


RE: ReBirth

by Kaoz



Series: X-Series [3]
Category: Dark Angel, Resident Evil - All Media Types
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-06-27
Updated: 2012-06-27
Packaged: 2017-11-08 17:42:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 26,212
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/445782
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kaoz/pseuds/Kaoz
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>-Third in the X-Series fics.- <br/>We are all that's left, awakened to a world that made no sense. They changed us. We were dead and now the world is dying all around us.</p><p>Takes place 15-20 years in the future. Nÿx and Alec have been cloned, Umbrella has turned the world to shit and the last of humanity is trying to survive. Takes place before Resident Evil:Extinction</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Resurrection

**Author's Note:**

> I'm going off the 2nd RE movie in this chapter so Carlos hasn't joined up with Claire and Vegas hasn't happened yet. The guy in the pod is Alec- well... it's the cloned version of the original. Because, you know, Umbrella likes to clone- so Alec and Nyx will be teenagers in this fic and equals now that Umbrella has messed with their DNA. I'm thinking its been about 15 to 20 years since the peace in TerminalCity with the Government and the U.S. got sort of back to being where it was in the 'golden days'. Now is when the world is going to shit and the zombies are taking control- which leads into the 3rd RE movie. If you haven't seen them you should plunk down in front of the idiot box with all 3 and have a marathon. = Hope this answers some of the questions.

** Resurrection **

Carlos moved to the next door and found it unlocked. The operation was a bust and now he had to find a way out for all of them.

"Another team's heading our way."

"Make that two." Jill said moving away from the door.

Carlos gritted his teeth and looked at the unlocked door. He had a bad feeling about it but there was no other way out of their current 'rat hole'.

"Check your ammo." He ordered slapping a new clip into his MP5K. "Doors unlocked, I'm making it our way out. Josh, leave them a token of our affection."

"Be happy to." Josh grinned. He set to work while Jill moved towards Carlos. She stood on the opposite side of the door, her weapon in hand and nodded. As one, they moved into the hallway, red and yellow lights flashing in warning. Jill moved to the left side while Carlos led the way. At the first intersection they turned right and headed down a second hallway. The Umbrella guards made a lot of noise coming out of the room.

Josh chortled and shrugged off Jill's look.

"You're…" but she had no words to describe the ex-Delta squad leader. She turned and followed Carlos into the next lab only to stop as the dimly lit glass gave them a view of the spheres in the next chamber. "What are they doing?"

Carlos shook his head, he had no clue but it was more likely not a good thing. He set to the controls, looking for a clue as to where it was hidden. Without the new virus, Umbrella would have one less weapon to use.

"Shit. They're making people now?" Josh asked moving to the glass window. He noticed the keycard pad in the door leading down a set of stairs into the chamber. He patted his vest and found what he'd been looking for; a white little square he'd picked off the dead lab rat. He swiped the card, the red light turned green and the glass door swished open.

"What are you doing?" Carlos asked scowling as he looked up. Josh shrugged again.

"Just checking to see if it worked." He said. "It works."

"I'm for leaving him behind." Jill said wearing a slight frown on her face. Josh placed his hand over his heart and sighed heavily. "Don't." she warned before he started on the faked hurt speech.

"I-." Josh raised his MK and fired off a spray. "Move." He ordered as the Umbrella guards crumpled in the doorway. Carlos was up in an instant, all three heading into the next chamber- the one with the pods. Just as the door slid closed another guard entered firing his weapon. The bullets ricocheted off the glass and all three straightened from their crouched positions.

"Its bullet proof." Jill said stating the obvious.

"Yes," Carlos agreed but he wanted to know _why_.

"I got this."Josh hefted his weapon and posted near the door. "You find us an exit."

Carlos and Jill separated, searching opposite ends of the room but there was no way out except the way they'd come in.

"We are screwed." Jill muttered to herself unable to keep her eyes from the pods and the males held captive inside.

"Nothing. You?" Carlos called to her.

"No, maybe the grates…" she looked down, their boots echoing on the metal floor. She frowned, looked at the pods again and then at the floor.

"What?" Carlos asked.

"They have grates here. These pods are filled with something- liquid. It makes sense they'd need a way to let it drain out of the room…" she turned to him, questioning.

Carlos dropped to his knees and tried to pull up a grate, it creaked but didn't give.

"Hey, guys?" Josh called.

"What?" Carlos grunted but as he looked up he saw the guards approaching with their own keycard. "Oh shit."

"Duck." Josh ordered hunkering behind one of the pods. He didn't wait for Jill or Carlos to obey, just pressed the button in his hand and closed his eyes as the room above them exploded. Shards of glass peppered over their heads, clinking against the grates.

Jill hadn't expected the blast and it knocked her back, right into one of the pods. Her hand came down hard on the metal pad and her shoulder smacked into the 'glass' only it wasn't glass and she looked in shock as the ripples travelled around its surface.

Something happened and the male in the pod opened his eyes. He jerked, hands half clawed striking at the surface, he kicked and the sphere burst drenching her in water. She bit back a yell, eyes wide as the male struggled on the grates, hacking and wheezing until he could breathe and then he was spitting up a milky mucus.

"What the hell…" Josh stared.

**-X-**

Noise.

It echoed and screamed- bounced around in the prison.

Dark hazel eyes opened and a silent scream released a hurricane of air bubbles.

They obscured everything in front but the noise- the screams- grew louder still.

There was blood and pain and more screaming- a sound like-

There was water.

It was all water.

Her voice- hands clawed at the thing on her face, tried to tear it away and it hurt. It felt as though her throat were being yanked out of her mouth and then there was a cyclone of bubbles.

Lights.

Red and yellow lights.

There was a blaring alarm ringing inside her head while she was dropped out of the water bubble that had been her prison. The metal grates cut into the skin of her arms and legs, she tried getting up but her body felt weak, her limbs were like foreign appendages and they didn't obey…

The screams got louder, the fear and pain- it was overwhelming. She covered her ears but that didn't block out their cries for help, their pleas for mercy-

Dead.

They were all dead.

She coughed, wracking lungfuls of a mucous substance until she could breathe easily. She wiped a limp hand over her full lips, hazel eyes looking up and around the room. It was a silver color, metal walls and cold but she wasn't alone. Pushing up she wobbled to her feet. She barely noticed the cold air blowing on her bare skin or her slight shiver.

She wasn't alone.

Five water spheres were held aloft by a metal arm; one of them empty. A keypad and screen sat in front of each one and inside… inside she saw the infant floating in water with a mask over the face. It had a fuzz of black hair swaying lightly with each ripple.

"Wh- whu-." Her throat felt raw. Words weren't easy to form… She couldn't make sense of what she saw…

The second sphere contained a young child- a girl. Her dark hair was longer but the face was still mostly obscured by the mask. The third sphere held a young girl, the same dark hair floated about her face and body but she moved- her hand twitched as though she were trying to reach out.

"Wh-ho…?" she frowned, closed her eyes as more voices-words- filled her head. She hunched into herself, scrunched her eyes shut and willed it to pass. She wanted the voices to quiet down and then it was.

She drew in a deep breath, straightened… her body jerked- a spasm and she steadied herself on the console in front of the empty arm where her prison had been. Sounds filled her head, the rush of noise- heart beats, the echo of a whisper she couldn't quite make out.

She turned to the last sphere.

A woman, the same dark hair as the other three.

She studied her, the lines of her body as it sat curved into the sphere… her feet pressed together, gently pointed downwards, the muscles in her calves up to her thighs- there was power. Both hands- fingers swaying imperceptively, up her arms-

The face- it was familiar- she knew her-

She turned to the other spheres, frowning-

She knew them all.

The door burst open and the yelling echoed in the metal room.

She clutched her skull, struggling against the onslaught of pictures flashing in her head. They were all yelling; too much noise and it had to stop. She wanted it to stop, wanted the voices and the pictures in her head to stop- it was too much, too much-

**-X-**

"Sir!" the technician rose in alarm. "Sir, one of the pods has opened."

"What?" the doctor frowned. He shoved past the technician to look at the screens and found that the vitals for the teenaged female had stopped recording. "Send in a security team. I want her back in stasis." He ordered scowling. "She isn't ready."

The screen in the stasis room showed him their fourth experimental clone which had taken a lot of time and money to re-grow from the original specimen captured five years before. He wasn't about to let her walk out his front door the way Isaacs had done.

"What happened?" the doctor demanded turning on the technician. The pods were a new take on Dr. Cilenti's old design, it made the process much easier to accomplish.

"I-I- I'm not sure." He stammered.

"Then get me the data for the last ten minutes- before she was released from stasis!" he demanded. The fact was- the clone had no business being awake. And he was curious about the why and how.

"Yes, sir." The technician turned away, headed to the nearest computer and started typing on the keyboard. The lights flickered a second before they were left in the dark.

"Now what?" the doctor demanded as a generator re-lit the lab in a blue glow. The thought occurred to him it might've been the clone. He knew the original female had been capable of emitting EMP bursts. It was one of the reasons Dr. Cilenti was hired and her work became priority one.

"Sir?" the technician turned, one hand wiping at his ear while a dark streak smeared the front of his snowy lab coat. He stumbled forward, falling face first onto the white tiles.

The doctor scooted back bumping into the computer console. He yelped in surprise and pain as his hands were singed.

The keys were charred around the edges and sparks glittered through the seams, the screen cut in and out then cleared. The doctor's jaw dropped in amazement as he viewed the destruction in what had been the stasis room. All the pods were obscured by a dark liquid which drained out. His four clones dropped to the metal grates- the lifeless bodies joining those of the security team…

**-X-**

We were awakened to a world that made no sense.

People were dying, becoming…something else.

There were monsters on the loose and only a few brave humans willing to do anything to stop it.

The memories came back slowly and with it…emotions.

Everything we were, what we did, where we'd been…

The family we left behind…

It wasn't easy- to see our reflections.

They changed us.

It wasn't overt but obvious to us; enough we noticed the lighter gold instead of light green.

Or the dominant shade of moss green in the hazel eyes. The irises- we saw it there as well, the feline in our DNA had been enhanced…

We were equals now; in strength, speed, agility…

Our senses-

We heard each other, the soft voiced echo inside of us…

There was hardly a moment I didn't see it, watched it happen again-

Sleep wasn't a welcome reprieve from the nightmare that had become our lives.

City after city fell to the undead and each time Umbrella covered it up again.

Raccoon City was the last straw.

We were dead.

No word, no contact from us to **TerminalCity** and no trace…

Both of us captured- beaten…

We were caged; studied, examined… killed and dissected before they started making our first clone. An exact copy of what we had once been.

But that wasn't good enough.

And like the Dr. Frankenstein's of _Manticore_ and _Chimera,_ Umbrella improved our 'design' four more times.

We are all that's left.

Generation 2 of the five clones.

We killed the others… killed the guards… blew up the facilities…

The world is dying all around us.

**-X-**

 

 


	2. Color of Death

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, it's taking a while for me to get this fic posted but be patient. I've only had the first 4chapters outlined and the muse has been flighty. After all, I'm not going to write up krap just to post and now that I've gotten some background info on the games and characters I'm bringing into the fic there's a whole bunch of new ideas floating around my head. So, there's certainly going to be another fic if I don't fit it all in this one.

** Color of Death **

**_Past_ **

_"Let me out!"_

_She screamed and banged on the door, scared. Waking up in a small room with no windows and no idea of how she'd gotten there… Luc barely remembered what she'd been doing before her mind went blank. She had a splitting headache too and the more she kicked and screamed the worse it got but she wanted out. Luc gasped as a shapr pain hit her. She doubled over, reaching for the wall. She slid down to the floor, trying to breathe through the pain and the door opened._

_Luc glared at the two men in tactical gear who walked in. They watched her, sitting in her corner as Dr. Cilenti entered the cell. Pale blue eyes surveyed 630's idea of a suitable subject and had to admit the female wasn't a total loss. She looked as unhealthy as the test result showed and Diana was not pleased with the care the female was giving to her subject._

_"You are too thin."_

_Luc snorted in derision. "You aint my Mother."_

_Cilenti's mouth twitched in a slight smile, heels clicking loudly in the small room as she approached Luc._

_"For now I am." She knelt and took Luc's face in her hand, pinching it hard._

_"Why?" Luc questioned already afraid of the answer._

_"You're carrying something of mine." Diana replied soflty, pale blue eyes slowly dropping to Luc's arms clutched around her middle._

_"But…He was…He…" Luc couldn't get the denial past her lips. Khaza had told her he wasn't part of that- one of those…things at **Terminal** **City-**_

_"Mine." Diana said with a small smile. "Now, you have an option here. You can save us and your self plenty of headaches-."_

_"Where? Where is he?" Luc demanded pulling her face away. "I want to see him."_

_Luc recoiled from the sharp sting on her cheek, green eyes open wide as Diana slowly got to her feet._

_"If you aren't co-operative, your stay with us will not be pleasant." She warned. A single tear slid down Luc's pink cheek as Diana turned away and walked out of the cell._

_The door closed behind them and Luc found herself alone again. She glanced at her stomach, the small 'bundle of joy' she was carrying was becoming anything but joyful. She cried softly, thinking how stupidly she'd fallen for the gorgeous face. She'd known it was too good to be true and yet she'd ignored her instincts. There was no one else to blame but herself for what was happening._

_"I hate you." Luc screeched through clenched teeth._

**-X-**

 

_Diana stood with arms crossed watching the news, her face devoid of any emotion as the Senator stood side by side with **TerminalCity's** representative._

'494.'

_She eyed the X-5 critically and found no fault with him- aside from the obvious disobedience- so far the Transgenic was living up to his potential. Not how it was intended of course but the X-5 definitely utilized all his 'gifts' to **TerminalCity's** advantage. _

_The press conference over, the cameras followed the Senator and TerminalCity Rep. Alec McDowell to their exit. Diana's eyes narrowed seeing another familiar face._

'722.'

 _Yes, it_ was _her and Diana couldn't help clenching her hands. She wanted 722, wanted her last 'kid'-_

_"You will come home, 722." Diana whispered. She'd make sure of it and unlike Col. Sanders; she wasn't going to end up a crispy hump of krap left in a ratty warehouse for local authorities to stumble across._

_The knock on her door preceded her lab assistant. She turned off the TV and walked behind her desk to take a seat in the leather chair._

_"It is the fetus." He said striding across the room to stand in front of her. "It reacts with her moods- not that there's more than one." He muttered with a scowl. Diana couldn't agree more, because the female had opted to make things difficult. She was watched at all times because the last thing Diana needed was for this to fail and having the woman inflict pain on herself…_

_"She's almost to term. Keep her comfortable, the fetus will do the rest." Diana ordered with a soft smile flitting over her lips._

_"What do we do about her injuries?"_

_Diana focused on her assistant._

_"Do?" she questioned. Because whatever pain the female felt was her own fault._

_"Yes, there's a whole new set of burns on her chest and abdomen-."_

_"Keep her alive until the fetus is delivered." Diana cut in. "That's our_ only _concern."_

**-X-**

**_Present_ **

There were no people. Nothing to make any sound- traffic, cars, animals… the city was completely silent. Everywhere she looked- cars were abandoned in the middle of the street, news stands left open and their merchandize scattered all over the street by gusts of wind. Store after store was deserted, even restaurants… she kept looking. Somewhere, some place… there had to be people, she couldn't be the last one-

"Hello?" she stopped in the middle of the street, wary of the shuffling figure turning the corner. It was a man- his suit was torn and dirty, his head hung to the left and he twitched. "Hey…"

Another one shuffled around the corner- a woman in a stained dress, one shoe dragging from the strap on her ankle and the other with a broken heel. Her stockings were ripped and the closer the pair got the easier it was to catch their scent.

"Dead." She hissed baring her teeth. They were both dead and she could clearly see the caked blood on their clothes and hair. With the shift in wind the decaying scent hit her strongly and she reacted. She ducked down, leg striking out and connecting with another one. It went down and in its place stood another, hands reaching for her.

They were all dead and she didn't hesitate to grab at the arm and yanked. It came off too easily and she was surprised. The corpse made no sound other than the unnerving moaning, shuffling closer. She swung the appendage feeling it thunk with a squishy sound and then the head flew off.

"Oh." She stood staring at the still body at her feet. The wind ruffled her hair and tugged on the lab coat she'd swiped from the technician. A slight chill went through her and she looked up to the shuffling couple. "Ok."

**-X-**

_Luc screamed again. She couldn't stop it, couldn't get rid of it and the pain was worse than before. All around her the white lab coats shuffled, bringing in machines, forcing her into the bed, strapping her wrists to the plastic rails._

_"Make it stop!" Luc screamed arching off the bed as another pain tore through her. She could smell her own skin, the burning stench- "Get it out!"_

_She caught sight of the Dr. the one who'd made Khaza and Nÿx, the one who'd ordered her brought in because of the baby. She stood on the other side of the window, arms crossed and watching. There was a soft smile on her features and Luc grew more enraged by it._

_"You'll die you fucking bitch!" Luc screamed. "You're going to die!"_

_Luc cried, tears streaking down her face knowing she'd never get to see it, see the bitch killed…_

'I'm going to die.'

_She'd known it; there was nothing she could do about it, nothing…_

**-X-**

She stared at her reflection in the mirror.

The way she looks and feels… they've changed her and it's easy to see.

Her fingers skim over her cheek, close to the dark green eyes-

_'They were hazel before.'_

She'd had normal human eyes… the slit irises are a rich brown, more golden.

There are other differences as well but nothing as obvious as her eyes. She'll have to cover them, hide them in order to pass off as normal if she ever finds any people. It's been two weeks and no sign of anyone, all she's found are those walking corpses-

"Zombies."

She's figured out their sweet spot. That first day outside… they came from everywhere; men, women… a couple children. She hesitated then but they were all dead and she killed them all. Killed all of them…

She frowns at the mirror, watches her reflection …

She knows she's different and can't remember anything- can't make sense of the images in her mind or why she feels as though her strength, speed and sense of smell are different- why its normal and yet _better_ than before.

Was she like this before?

What was she? Was she the only one?

_'No.'_

She is almost certain there were others…one?

"Who am I?"

But her reflection doesn't answer.

**-X-**

_"Alright. We're doing a sweep."_ Leon ordered as the chopper circled the roof top. _"We've got some survivors to pick up. Stay in radio contact and don't lose your buddy's."_ he smirked as the squad chuckled. Eight burly men in full tactical gear, armed and dangerous. He turned towards their exit, the smirk fading as he waited for the order to go.

_'Survivors…'_

That wasn't exactly why they were there, not why Leon was sent to _Armstead_ _City_ _._

_"48Hours, Kennedy."_

_"We won't be here that long."_ Leon assured.

 _"Better not, don't want to get blown up."_ Case added, though he wasn't the only one to feel that way.

None of the men wanted that.

Leon had a job to do- the chemical explosion two weeks ago was confirmed to be an Umbrella laboratory. Whatever had happened then…

_'The world is dying around us and Umbrella keeps shoveling their shit out.'_

_"You're good to go."_

_"Let's move!"_ Leon was the first one out and onto the roof, gun drawn.

**-X-**

She easily spotted the helicopter as it circled away from the city. She focused, bringing the black chopper into better view but couldn't find any distinguishing marks.

Had Umbrella come back?

Had they sent someone to the labs?

Why?

_'Someone thinks it's worth looking into.'_

And _if_ there was something left of an Umbrella project…

"Like hell." She snarled, grabbing a second set of holsters and the small satchel with ammo.

The last two weeks hadn't been wasted. The city still had power and she'd gotten access to most of the street cameras. She watched the news clips and scrounged up old articles- anything to explain the deserted city…

The dead came back to life.

It started in morgues and hospitals. The dead rose only to attack the living- she watched the slaughters in the streets. Zombies… they spread quickly.

Umbrella.

She placed the blame on them- was certain they were responsible.

_'They won't be leaving town.'_

She wasn't letting them take anything back.

**-X-**

"We're making a lot of noise." Garza complained as he backed up and fired another round.

"These MP5's don't have suppressors." Sullivan retorted as he dropped another two zombies.

"Hurry the fuck up!" Roq called at their backs. Garza and Sullivan turned as one and ran while Roq covered their six. Once inside Roq fell back and slammed the door shut, dropping a security bar in place. They stopped just in the entrance and looked at the store.

"Again?" Sullivan questioned. It was followed by the pounding of the door and all three aimed their weapons.

"What's with you and sex shops?" Garza demanded as they backed away from the door and slowly made their way into the aisles of the store.

"They're secur-."

"And he always leaves with an item or two." Sullivan cut in.

"Fine." Roq grumbled following them towards the back of the store. "Next time find your own fox hole."

Garza snickered though it faded as they stopped in front of a dark hallway. Sullivan reached down and grabbed his flashlight. The beam shone bright, lighting the empty corridor to the only door.

"How many?" Garza questioned.

"I say five." Roq tossed out.

"More like eight." Sullivan corrected.

"Damn it." Garza grumbled. "You two always come in low." He blew out a breath and readied his weapon. "On three."

"I'll take the right." Sullivan approached the door, flashlight shining bright on the metal.

"Guess I got the left." Roq shrugged.

"Try not to shoot _me_." Garza scowled as they stopped in front of the door.

"Man-! I didn't!" Roq protested in a harsh whisper. "How many times are you going to bitch about it?"

"He did save your ass." Sullivan chimed in.

Garza glared, ready to remind them of the scar on his left arm when three solid thunks sounded on the metal door. They froze, waited in silence but nothing else happened. Roq tilted his head towards it with a shrug. Sullivan handed off his flashlight and approached the door.

Case rested his ear gently on the metal and let out a breath. All he could hear was the humming of power in the building. He closed his eyes and concentrated, filtering out the sound of his heartbeat and the others. Case sniffed delicately, nostrils flaring but the overwhelming stench of zombie decay almost made him puke.

"Sullivan?" Roq hissed loudly as Case drew back.

"Got nothing." He shook his head and took a step back.

"Alright." Garza straightened, weapon raised. "On three."

Case gripped the handle…

**-X-**

Soldiers.

Three of them in full tactical gear. They were heavily armed, black suits with no insignia… Something felt familiar about them but she couldn't remember what or why, though she figured it had to be Umbrella.

The soldiers were surrounded, gunfire echoed up to her perch on the roof across the street from them. The zombies would take care of them.

_"We're cut off."_

_"Leon!"_

_"There's too many-."_

Their voices float up on dead air and she ignored them…

**-X-**

_"Get to high ground."_ Leon ordered into his mic.

 _"Jackson!"_ Chris called but all they could hear was more gunfire.

 _"Ross! Melvin- what's your twenty?"_ Leon demanded moving back the way they'd come. They were blocks from the laboratories with 45hours left on the clock. There was plenty of time… and all three knew they'd never make it to the other unit- not before the zombies.

They heard the scream cut out.

In the sudden silence the three stopped where they were and waited for some sound- a word to let them know the others were still able to fight; nothing.

"Let's get to the lab." Leon ordered. Chris and Collins followed him without protest.

**-X-**

 

She stood just inside the main entrance to the labs. While she knew Umbrella was to blame for the city's current status it was also partly her fault. Blowing up the facility might have released that thing she'd seen stalking the group of soldiers and it wasn't the only monster out there…

_'I did this too… I helped bring this about…'_

Accidentally or on purpose, there was no changing what was done. She walked in, treading lightly and adjusting her eyes to the dim lights and darkness.

_'Umbrella isn't taking anything out of here.'_

**-X-**

"I told you it was a bad idea!" Roq yelled over the sound of his MP5.

"Fucking gorillas-!" Garza cursed though he sounded incredulous. He knew what he was seeing; gorillas, or what had once been primates. These had been fucked with-or infected; they looked like body-builders on steroids, rippling muscle all over - the pinkish mass shone through tears in their fur-

"Twelve o'clock!" Sullivan shouted. They were being chased by the funky monkeys and had he been just a regular civilian he would shit his pants at the sight of those salivating chompers, wild eyes and deranged yells.

"Bad fucking idea!" Roq kept yelling as he cleared their six and ran a few yards only to stop and sight another target to give his comrades a chance to move.

"We fucking heard you the first time, Roq! Shut up and shoot." Garza ordered as he ran past to take cover.

"Obviously not!" Roq retorted. He fired again though it only slowed the primates. It was like they felt no pain or if they did it wasn't bad enough to stop them. "We wouldn't be running from the goddamn monkeys if you had!"

"Roq!" Sullivan watched the primate tackle the big man…

**-X-**

Chris swiveled around absolutely certain he'd heard…something. He squinted into the shadows unable to make out anything, not even movement. Collins nudged him lightly and both moved after Leon in the lead. So far they hadn't found anything…nothing remotely monster like or alive; dead-alive…

Again Chris turned to the soft sound and got nudged by Collins who was in the rear. Chris frowned, still cocking his ear to where he thought he'd heard the sound as they continued deeper into the labs.

"Gross." Collins muttered as they passed yet another table covered in blood, tissues and some other gooey substance neither wanted to explore closely.

"It'll get worse." Chris stated. He'd seen other labs, other monsters Umbrella was responsible for.

"I don't get it." Collins muttered. "I mean why'd they do it?"

"Why?" Chris scoffed.

"Yeah, c'mon…who does this benefit? Those zombies- it's like _Night of the Living Dead._ What does Umbrella get out of fucking up the world?" Collins looked from Chris to Leon. He didn't see the point- why anyone wanted a world overrun by the dead. Umbrella couldn't be immune to their own viruses… could they?

"Who knows." Chris shrugged.

"We have a job to do, gentlemen." Leon called back. "Find what Umbrella was doing here, get proof for the big wigs and get out before the bombs drop."

"I can do that." Chris agreed with a quicker pace.

"Yeah," Collins echoed. "…uh…" he paused, glancing back and jerked as a shadow moved. "H-!"

It was fast and Collins didn't get a chance to fire his weapon before the licker pounced.

"Son of a bitch!" Chris let loose a stream of bullets as another licker came out of a darkened hallway.

"Move! Move! Move!" Leon ordered. He grabbed the back of Chris' vest and hauled him towards another hallway- this one lit with flickering lights and fired his weapon at anything that moved.

**-X-**

They were trapped.

The moment she heard the discharge of weapons was when she should have turned around and left them to die.

It's what she would have done… but she wasn't so sure of _who_ they were, not with the bits of conversation she'd heard...

She came up behind the licker crouched over the soldier, still feeding. The sound of her blade was soft but even so it drew the lickers attention. Its tongue lashed out and fell aside harmlessly while she blurred closer and sliced the head in two. There were two others ahead and without pause she ran forward, one licker slit in half from back to head and the last neatly wrestled to the ground, the blade pinned between its shoulder blades.

She left it there and continued forward quickly and silent, a Walther P99 in each hand.

**-X-**

Leon and Chris backed up, running low on ammo even as the lickers kept coming.

"It was nice working with you, Leon." Chris said as he plugged another one.

"You going somewhere?" Leon asked.

"Not fucking likely." Chris scoffed scooting back until they were against the wall.

"We aren't dying here." Leon stated. "Not today."

"You got a way out, I'm all ears." Chris quipped as his gun clicked empty. "Fuck me."

"Door!" Leon shoved Chris making him run to the empty doorway.

"Get down."

Both men skidded as they tried to stop before barreling into the girl. She tossed something over their heads and with an open hand shoved Chris to the floor. He hit it hard, biting back a pained grunt only for Leon to come down half on top of him.

The building rocked with the explosion as both grenades activated. The lickers were left in pieces but she knew there would be more; there was always more…

"Up." She ordered grabbing the first man and pushing him through the door.

Leon found himself skidding on the tiled floor, quickly moving his leg out of the way as Chris followed. They looked at the girl- the door slamming shut behind her and a bar shoved into place.

"Who the fuck are you?" Chris demanded pushing off the floor. He took in her black clad figure, the array of weapons- side arms in the holsters strapped to her thighs, a second set on a shoulder holster and the various blades they could see strapped to her forearm and on her hip. She was dressed for battle and her inscrutable expression did nothing to diminish the beauty of her exotic features.

"You first." She said and her voice was a soft growl. "Who do you work for?"

Leon blinked, the room was dimly lit, the light flickering but he was almost positive there was something wrong with her eyes. He reached for the gun tucked in his boot-

"You're going to lose that hand." She warned pinning him with her gaze.

Chris' eyes narrowed. It was a second before he launched himself at the girl and Leon grabbed the gun from the holster.

She rolled with the weight of the big soldier, easily tossing him into the wall. She got to her feet gracefully, blurring straight at the gun aimed for her.

Leon felt the vice-like grip on his wrist and couldn't hold onto his Beretta. It clattered to the floor, echoing loudly in the room-

Her eyes…

They were a dark shade of green- cat eyes and the iris was an unusual shade of honey brown, almost golden.

"Alec…"

**-X-**

_Nÿx couldn't stop thinking of it- Khaza…_

'He put Luc in danger.'

 _He'd been following orders, did exactly what Cilenti told him to and Luc… She was dead because of it, because of Khaza and the baby_ Chimera _wanted._

'Because she couldn't get me.'

_And Nÿx felt responsible for Luc's death._

_"Nÿx," Alec called yet again but she wasn't about to slow down. "You know this isn't right. You know-."_

_"That bitch set up a trap?" Nÿx cut in, dark-hazel eyes flashing like emeralds with anger. "I'm not stupid, I know what this is." She'd gotten the body special delivered…_

_"Then you better listen when I tell you we can't go in there and rescue the kid-."_

_"I'm not letting her have another one of us, Alec!" Nÿx yelled. She drew in a deep breath, eyes closed while Alec waited, stone faced. She knew he was right, she knew he was thinking straight while she was going off her anger and his plan was the better plan…_

_"I get it." Alec said. "I want them gone too."_

_"Then help me, Alec." Nÿx asked._

**-X-**

_Nÿx blurred down the hall, to the bank of monitors manned by_ Umbrella _security. Cilenti had traded up- no longer a government lab coat. Now Cilenti had a private pharmaceutical company funding her 'experiments'. Nÿx wasn't about to let it continue._

'Call me a terrorist, cus I give a shit, really.'

"Nÿx," _Alec's voice sounded in her ear._ "Found the kid- he's in a box."

"What?" _Nÿx froze, the charge in her hands pressed on the door._ "What do you mean, 'a box'?"

"Kids caged, Nÿx." _Alec re-iterated and he didn't sound any happier than she did about it._

"On my way." _Nÿx headed down the hallway to the next set of doors and set the charges there when the first explosion rocked the building. Nÿx smiled pleased with the second explosion and blurred towards the bank of elevators. The doors dinged open as she neared them exposing the black clad guards and a lab coat. Nÿx tossed the small satchel and blurred around the corner. The explosion was followed by the screeching of metal as the elevators fell the twenty feet to the basement level._

"Get out-!"

"Alec?" _Nÿx paused, her body tensed as she waited for him to respond._ "Alec!" _there was no answer, not a sound aside from the static. "Please, oh please…" she muttered under her breath as she sped towards him and the kid._

**-X-**

_"You don't disappoint 722."_

_Nÿx rolled her head, eyes blinking open slowly._

_"I knew you couldn't resist coming for the child." Diana smirked. "And now I get three."_

_Nÿx tried to catch a glimpse of Cilenti but she stood just out of her line of sight. Either way, she couldn't get her eyes to focus and the room was a blur._

_"Alec…" Nÿx tried to move. She could barely feel her limbs and the incessant pinprick of ants crawling over her was painful enough._

_"Don't worry about the X-5." Diana cooed. "I have plans for him as well." Her heels clicked in the lab and then she stood at Nÿx' feet, pale hands resting on the table. "_ Umbrella _has provided me with… better toys than_ Chimera _ever had. Private corporations do have their perks you know?" she smiled._

_"Try not to touch her, Dr. Cilenti."_

_Nÿx focused on the lab coat in the room. Her brow furrowed in concentration as she tried to bring him into focus. She_ knew _him…_

_"She's live, at full charge."_

_Nÿx barely felt the current lightly skimming over her skin._

_"Hmm," Diana's hand hovered over Nÿx' toes as if she'd touch her. "Thank you, Dr. White. I wouldn't want to suffer the same treatment as the X-5."_

_"Alec." Nÿx focused on that even though she knew exactly who was at her side._

'White… it can't be…'

_She sniffed and the scent was unmistakable even with the slight difference._

'Ray White.'

 _Nÿx felt her eyes burn with unshed tears. After the trouble Max had gone through to keep the kid out of the_ Conclave's _hands… it was a slap in the face, is what-_

_"Don't you remember, 722?" Diana gloated. "The X-5 tried to rescue my project."_

_Nÿx remembered; she couldn't get Alec out of there and the child… it wouldn't let go of Alec, wouldn't stop shocking him…_

_"After we get through with the initial work-up…" he trialed off, waiting for Dr. Cilenti to give her ok on what he'd proposed._

_"Dr. White is going to dissect you. Both of you." Diana smiled coldly. "No anesthetic." She looked at him, eye slightly crinkled at the corners. She was pleased._

_"Of course." Ray set the syringe on the tablet, eyes on Nÿx. He'd heard of them, the Transgenics holed up in that waste dump they called home. The government wasn’t doing anything to wipe them out, they were too busy using them and any protests were ignored._

_"I have plans for you, 722. Bigger plans than anything_ Chimera _could have dreamed up. You see, at_ Umbrella _I have cloning tech. Yes," Diana nodded. "I'm making clones."_

**-X-**

 


	3. Reunion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, we're moving. It's slow but we are moving.

** Reunion **

"You remember anything else yet?" Jill questioned glancing over her shoulder to where Alec was sitting in the back seat. He'd taken to wearing dark shades to hide his eyes, something Jill was thankful for. It was still a little weird to look at him, the very human face except for the eyes.

 _'And his teeth._ '

That expression, about getting long in the tooth? That was about how she'd describe Alec's teeth, just a little longer in the canines than a normal human being.

_'He isn't normal.'_

Not their kind of normal but Jill saw the advantage of having Alec on their side.

"No…" Alec replied, his voice just above a whisper. There was a rough quality to it, a little too old for the very young kid- a teenager really…

 _'More clones.'_ Jill thought and wondered what Alice would think about that.

"Don't worry." Carlos reassured with a glance in the rearview mirror. "You'll remember something eventually. You just need some time."

Alec nodded though he didn't really believe them. Time… it wasn't helping him make sense of the images in his brain; he didn't have an explanation for _what_ he was. What he'd done so far… he didn't _think_ about what he was doing, the guards he killed and why?

Again, Alec found himself staring at Jill where she sat next to Carlos. The window was open allowing the wind to blow her dark hair about her shoulders. There was something about Jill that reminded him-

"You're staring." Jill frowned over her shoulder.

"There's nothing else to look at." Carlos noted with a smile and shrugged.

"It's creepy." Jill replied with a slight frown at him. "You're creeping me out." She said to Alec with a look that clearly said 'Knock it off'. Alec didn't reply, just turned to stare out his window.

He rarely said anything- explain why he'd stare at Jill… Carlos would make light of it but that didn't mean he wasn't keeping an eye out. They didn't really trust him, even with the other one, the Alice clone. He sat looking out the window, not really seeing the scenery. His reflection taunted him.

He was different.

He _looked_ different-his eyes… A strange shade of green-dark, rich-almost black – not normal. Normal would be the mossy green he remembered from before, _human_ eyes.

This was…

_'Feline.'_

They made him an animal…that's not what bothered him, didn't feel…wrong?

Alec wasn't normal, not by their standards but he was positive he hadn't been their normal before.

The first two weeks after the 'rescue' Alec couldn't remember his own name. Then, one day… wham! Just like that; he lunged out of the covers snarling at no one and everyone. And the pictures playing in his head… Alec remembered being caged, the pain- and _her._

_'Where are you?'_

Carlos ignored the soft growl coming from the back seat, didn't make any sudden moves nor did Jill give any sing of hearing Alec. They were used to him now, used to the bestial sounds he made either in sleep or awake. Seven months of close living quarters helped them all get a little comfortable around each other, helped them learn to read each others signals.

_Avalon_ _City_ _20miles_

Carlos sped past the sign; they didn't bother to read them anymore. Each city or town… it was all the same; drive in, get supplies, search for survivors and get the hell out, preferably in one piece and un-infected. There had only been a handful of survivors along the way, all of them leaving soon after they were rescued to search out some non-existent haven… At first, Carlos hadn't made any protest, because the world was still intact, the virus was contained… or so they'd thought.

Carlos stared at the open road in front of him and wondered where Alice was, if she was still alive then shook his head. Of course Alice was alive; Umbrella wasn't going to put her down, not while they still needed her.

"Maybe this'll be the place." Jill said, stretching out in her seat and yawning.

Alec knew he hadn't been alone. There was someone else, someone important he needed to find.

"You remember her name yet?" Josh asked. Alec didn't bother to reply anymore, they already knew enough.

**-X-**

"You wanna move a little faster, back there?" Leon snapped. He was breathing hard and lugging the kid along with his pack was making it harder to keep his pace and he didn't want her on his ass.

"You're slowing _me_ down."

Leon didn't disagree nor did he have to tell her his pace was that of a normal human. The past seven months had been a long road to 'friendship' if even that. _Armstead_ _City_ had been a disaster; he'd lost four men to a bunch of fucked up primates, some… huge motherfucker- And all he had to show for the trouble was a handful of survivors and …Nÿx.

"Fuck-!" Leon drew in a harsh breath, green eyes locking on the figure blurring over him and the kid he'd somehow managed not to crush as Nÿx knocked them down. As a member of his team Nÿx more than pulled her weight. There weren't any complaints from the other men and as far as the BSAA was concerned, Nÿx was a ghost. His superior trusted him and so far that had been enough to forgo any mention of her in their reports.

Nÿx lightly hopped onto the hood of the abandoned truck, the Mac10's aimed and fired. From his spot on the ground, Leon could make out the half dozen feet and then bodies of the zombies coming for them.

"Fuck." He muttered yet again while the kid clung to his vest. Leon half rose when he heard the others.

"We got a BMF hot on our ass!" Case yelled as he came around the corner.

"Let's go, let's go!" Chris urged right behind him and fired his grenade. Leon huddled over the kid as dust and debris floated towards them.

"Nÿx!"

Leon heard her snarled response but it didn't stop Chris from pointing her to the large figure lumbering out of the smoke. He got to his feet, green eyes narrowing at the sight of the BMF-

"Biggest mother fucker yet." Chris stated.

"This one's uglier." Case noted as he slowly backed up.

"What the hell is it?" Leon wondered under his breath. He held his weapon ready knowing the Beretta wasn't going to do any good against that.

"Dead."

Leon glanced at Nÿx; she stood silently at his side, cat eyes on her target, looking calm and collected. Then again, she was always calm in the face of whatever dangers they ended up facing.

"Go." Nÿx held her Blacktail for Leon to take. "Fresh clip. I'll meet you at the extraction point." She looked at him, caught once more by the familiar feeling that had kept her from snapping his neck when she rescued them.

_'It's not him.'_

She knew that.

'Alec' was out there…somewhere. Was he alive? Was he aware? Did he know about her?

Nÿx pushed those thoughts aside and forced her attention back to the threat; a big elephant like man Umbrella had concocted.

"Case!" Leon called, green eyes hard as he set the young man to watch her six.

"Roger that. I'll get her there." Sullivan assured.

"Wasted babysitter, Leon." Nÿx growled softly. She launched herself at the monster before he could reply. She was lost to the hunt, the thrill of the attack and they left her to it.

**-X-**

Alec found them, followed the scent of blood to where a small group of survivors was trying to barricade the door and windows of the ground floor store they were forced into. He came at them from behind ignoring Jill's voice in his ear telling him to wait. Each bullet put a zombie down, nothing wasted and that was all precision training in full effect.

"Shit." Josh stared at the mound of dead zombies blocking the door.

"They're inside." Alec said, cat eyes locked on the door, head slightly tilted.

"H-." Josh glared at the blur already knocking the door down. "Try not to scare this bunch." He called after Alec. He followed him, shaking his head and remembering not to mutter under his breath since it seemed Alec could pretty much hear a fucking pin drop halfway around the world.

"Josh!"

"Inside." He waved at Jill and Carlos waiting for them just inside and scanning the street. So far there had only been clumps of undead, nothing big and he personally hoped it stayed that way.

"What good is he dead?" Jill complained with a scowl on her pretty face. "He takes off and there's no way to rein him in-."

"He's not a dog." Carlos frowned.

"He's not alone either so why the hell does he act like he is?" Jill demanded.

"You worried about the kid?" Josh questioned taking up the rear. "Or not having him to protect your ass?"

"Not now." Carlos ordered scowling at them both. "People need our help here."

All three stopped in the thresh hold to survey the 'survivors'. Jill didn't think much of the storage room but there weren't any windows and that was good.

"Only one exit." Josh noted scanning the room.

"Easy to defend." Carlos knew as well as they no one would make it out alive if the zombies got past the door.

"Perfect pen." Alec growled. He snatched a woman from the group huddling against the farthest wall. She screamed for him to let her go, tried to kick or hit him but Alec just ignored her.

"What are you doing?" Jill demanded.

"Infected." Alec replied curtly and tossed the woman at their feet. Jill drew her gun immediately and the woman screamed, scuttling back on her butt begging them not to hurt her.

"You sure?" Jill questioned, never looking away from the woman. She knew what would happen and didn't look forward to what she was going to do.

"Anymore?" Carlos drew up beside Alec, those cat eyes on the group and after a moment received a negative shake of his head.

"Lets go people." Josh ordered. He waved them out while the woman got to her knees and stammered at them to help her. A few hesitated but no one spoke up, no one wanted to die there.

"You're already dead, lady." Jill nodded to where she saw the crusted blood on her forearm and the hastily tied handkerchief. "You can feel it. Inside…"

"Please... please don't-." she choked on a sob, lost her breath and began to cough. Alec struck then, grabbed her neck one handed and gave it a vicious twist. Jill heard the snap of bones, it was harsh enough it tore through the skin of her throat and he let her drop.

Jill sighed. She hated that part, killing people…

"Umbrella did this." Carlos said softly at her back. Umbrella was killing the world, they knew that.

Alec didn't say a word, they didn't question him over what he'd done, snapping the woman's neck-

_'She was dead.'_

Or as good as dead because they had no cure for the woman, nothing to stop the virus from running its course. He'd done what had to be done, they knew that.

**-X-**

"We shouldn't have separated." Nÿx said.

"That took longer than I thought." Leon quipped, he was out of breath and his side had a painful stitch. He'd wondered when Nÿx would call him on the decision he'd made earlier. Sending Case and the last three men in his unit back to the pick-up point with the survivors they'd found was smart. He couldn't let them slow him down and Nÿx was just as good as if he'd had a whole unit at his back.

"You're the leader." Nÿx said grabbing at his vest and hauling him into the parking structure. "I didn't want to undermine you in front of your men."

Leon snorted a laugh and caught his breath while she surveyed the half empty garage. What cars there were had a layer of grime covering them. He knew well enough Nÿx had no problem speaking up, most times Leon didn't mind it.

"Anymore of 'em?" he asked low voiced and followed close behind her as they moved through the cars.

"Always is." Nÿx replied softly. She missed nothing of their surroundings, finding the bank of elevators easily in the dark space. She made sure to keep Leon close, not wanting to lose him or have to find him and he knew better than to wander off. "Why is the BSAA taking on Umbrella?"

Leon was caught off guard. Nÿx had never asked him anything aside from what the BSAA was about. She didn't readily agree to his offer, unsure if it was safe and he'd convinced her they had nothing to do with Umbrella. The thought nagged at him constantly; was she right? No corporation or establishment- even law enforcement- was immune to corruption. What if the BSAA had ties to Umbrella?

_'The BSAA wouldn't keep sending us to find proof against Umbrella if it was like that.'_

"We're the good guys, Nÿx." Leon offered a quick grin to the dark. "It's what we do. Take down the bad guys."

"Right." Nÿx replied and he knew she'd rolled her eyes at him. "Stairs are eight feet to the left."

He followed her, wincing at the screech from the metal door and then as it clanged shut.

"I don't think they heard you." Leon frowned.

"They did." Nÿx assured and that wiped the frown from his features. "Faster."

He complied, running up to the second level, the stitch returned as a painful reminder by the time he reached the third level.

"Fourth level is open." Nÿx called back. He heard the door open and hurried the last steps to catch up. "Wait."

Leon smacked into her back, the frown once more on his face as he tried to regulate his breathing. She remained still and Leon was forced to stay where he was. He didn't know what she saw or if there was anything there but he wasn't going to question her right then. When she tapped his arm he placed his hand on her back, between her shoulder blades, moving slowly as she proceeded forward. A scraping sound echoed but Nÿx didn't stop moving and that was answer enough for Leon.

They were definitely not alone.

**-X-**

"What the hell…" Jill looked to Carlos, one hand raised in question as again, Alec took off without warning. "This is getting old."

 _"Alec, where are you going?"_ he didn't expect an answer. As one the trio headed in the direction Alec had gone. _"Alec!"_

"She's here." Alec was sure and he wasn't turning back. They weren't important, not anymore, not right then. Carlos, Jill and Josh…they could take care of themselves for a few minutes. They were smart enough to run away from trouble and capable enough to fight if off when running wasn't an option. They would survive without him until he found her.

Alec stopped at the intersection; he looked in all four directions frowning. He raised his head and sniffed lightly until he found what he was looking for.

_'She's here.'_

**-X-**

"Start the car." Nÿx ordered stepping in front of Leon. The Mac 10's flashed and the licker fell though it kept dragging itself towards them.

"Start the fucking car, like I do this every day." Leon gruffed as he broke the window of the SUV. He covered his face from the flying glass and reached in. "Come on, baby." He lay on the seat hands fumbling with the cover until he yanked it off. Outside he could hear the burst of gunfire from Nÿx. She was faster, he'd seen her but that didn't mean she could take on more than three or four at a time.

_'Maybe…'_

Still, Leon didn't want to find out. Luckily the engine turned over without much fuss.

"Let's go!" he yelled reaching for his door when something heavy crunched the roof of his newly acquired SUV.

Nÿx turned, catching sight of Leon rolling out of the silver truck with his guns out. He smacked into the ground shooting at the licker perched on the car. Something clicked in her brain, images she'd been unable to clearly focus played in concert with a rush of sounds and voices. It was less than a second but it felt as though a lifetime of events had passed and the door was wide open to who she had been.

_'Assassin.'_

She'd thought she was a soldier; it made sense. Nÿx was obviously trained, any weapon felt comfortable in her small hands. She could take it apart and put it together without need of schematics-had done it blindfolded much to the men's amazement. She automatically assessed her surroundings for any advantages and calculated escape routes with ease. There wasn't one point in the body she couldn't target to inflict the maximum amount of pain if not immediate death. Those things were second nature to her, as simple as drawing in a breath but _what_ she was- what she had been…?

_'I'm a killer. I was always a killer.'_

Their faces were clear and the children were the worst to accept but she'd been no more than a child herself.

_'Why?'_

Or rather, _who_ would have sent a child to do those horrible things?

**-X-**

The trio looked in all four directions trying to spot where the shots had come from but the abandoned city echoed with it.

"This town doesn't look any better than the last." Jill said.

"It's still standing." Carlos pointed out with another look at their surroundings.

"Guess they haven't gotten around to blowing this one up." Josh noted. "Or maybe they just don't think this is worth-."

"I'd like to hurry." Jill cut in. "And we are not splitting up." she forestalled Josh's un-voiced suggestion. Carlos didn't have to back her on that because he wasn't about to let either of them wander off alone in search of Alec.

"Ok, I'm pretty sure he's that way." Josh pointed directly ahead of them. Carlos glanced down the street and just shrugged. At that point any direction was as good as any if Alec didn't respond.

 _"We're at North and Fifth. Which way Alec?"_ Carlos shrugged at Jill's look but they were surprised to hear him respond and they wasted no time heading left on Fifth.

"Why'd he go in there?" Josh questioned staring at the looming parking structure. There was a car – its front tires hanging over the edge where it had crashed through the wall. There was no one inside.

"Not good." Jill grumbled drawing her 9mm. It never got easier, seeing the zombies lumber out of the shadows and into the sunlight. Walking corpses that used to be people…

**-X-**

He didn't think.

The door swung shut behind him but Alec was focused on the scene in front of him. The silver SUV-its roof sunk in and the bloody form of the licker hanging off the edge and a second stalking towards the man… She stood so still in the middle of all the noise.

Nostrils flared gently; easily picking up the familiar scent and with it a rush of emotion so strong he couldn't get a breath. Pictures flashed in his head; gray sterile walls, cold floors and kids in gray uniforms-. Images of military facilities, the training and that damned red beam shining into his eye- Alec hissed at the phantom pain. He wasn't the only one, a hundred different faces flashed in a second and not all of them pretty but the monstrous visages didn't frighten him.

_'Family…'_

Yeah, that's who they had been and just as quickly he knew who _he_ had been, where and how they'd ended up in the present.

"Nÿx."

His voice was no more than a soft hiss. It woke her from the memories, brought her into the present with a rush. She half turned; the breeze flowing from the open rails flung an inky swatch into her eyes-

The building shook, the concrete in front of her cracked and tore sending chunks flying towards the animal stalking their way. Alec moved in front of her, hand stretched out, palm up and the monstrosity Umbrella couldn't keep contained flew back as if it weighed no more than a feather. The wall at its back crumbled like a cracker but their sensitive ears picked up the squish as it impacted.

"Alec." The soft tone of her voice drew his attention. He focused and found himself on his knees with her arm around him-

Her eyes… he remembered the dark hazel eyes, dark green- so dark it was crazy how the gold flecks in her eyes showed through.

She felt his hand trace her cheek, warm and alive just like she'd been dreaming...

The changes were immediately noticeable. Her eyes were a lighter shade, more mossy green with honey gold irises-

 _'Like mine had been.'_ Alec thought and that troubled him. Only his eyes were a dark golden brown and the slit irises a hazel green…and that wasn’t the only change in them.

"You found me." Nÿx whispered. Her full lips turned up, the same smile he remembered only now it was tinged with sadness, he could hear the tremble in her voice and there was that shine to her eyes that was unmistakable- _he knew her, knew_ her moods as well his own. She dropped her weapon and held onto Alec; as if afraid he'd disappear.

Leon got to his feet; green eyes focused on the teens kneeling in a pile of ruble and chanced another glance at the lot. He sighed, the kid had trashed the place and if there was a salvageable car it'd be hell trying to drive it out.

"I'm gonna guess you know him-." Leon jerked back a step as the teen lunged off the ground- just as fast as Nÿx- only to stop as her hand circled his arm.

"This is Leon." She said at his back. Alec still bared his teeth, glaring at the man who'd been with Nÿx the past seven months. "He's an ally-."

"You better have a good reason for the quake, Alec."

Both Leon and Nÿx turned to the door where three other people stood surveying the damage Alec had caused. Nÿx automatically reached to her vest for the shades she kept stashed there.

"And he's got friends." Leon muttered looking up and finding another huge crack in the concrete over his head. Apparently the trio came in different degrees of destruction.

_'What else did Umbrella load them with?'_

"Whoa," Josh paused behind Carlos and Jill to survey the damage. "The kid went all out." He grinned spotting the slim shape slightly hidden by Alec. "Showing off, huh?"

"Knock it off." Jill commanded with an elbow in his side that did nothing to wipe the grin off Josh' face. She didn't notice since her eyes were glued to the man standing behind the teens. She took a tentative step towards them, brow furrowed but she was almost positive… "Leon?"

Nÿx straightened, eyes going to Leon who stood just as still looking at the female slowly approaching.

"Hi, Jill." He raised a hand in greeting, lips slightly turning up.

"Hi?" Jill echoed with just a thread of anger in her voice.

"We thought you were dead." Josh stated coming forward only Jill got there first along with a fist.

"Ow!"

Nÿx lunged-habit, because for the past six months she'd kept Leon alive when he couldn't do for himself. And why? Because of the familiar features; a reminder of who she’d been searching for.

Alec grabbed her back, pinned her arms to her sides and she stilled immediately though she growled softly, her eyes never leaving Jill.

"Where the hell have you been?" Jill demanded just as the mic on Leon's vest went to static and a fuzzy voice.

 _"Go again?"_ Leon spoke and held a finger raised for the others to wait. Jill's eyes narrowed and had an overwhelming urge to snap it- she'd been demoted! Her career in ruins because they'd blamed her for his death and he wasn't even dead!

 _"Chopper en-route. ETA, 5minutes."_ Case re-iterated.

 _"Change of plans,"_ Leon glanced at the others. "Need a lift?" he asked.

**-X-**

They kept glancing at the teens curled together in the corner of the chopper. Neither one had let go of the others hand, nor did they acknowledge their audience. Leon was just a little bothered at how easily he'd been replaced because Nÿx deferred to the teen- _Alec._

So they weren't regular kids, hell they were Umbrella experiments that somehow hadn't gone all wrong like most everything else those fuckers touched. Leon wasn’t complaining, he was more than happy Nÿx was on his side.

 _"How come we didn't know about the BSAA?"_ Jill asked. Leon knew she wanted answers, about his presumed death, why he'd gone along with it, never bothered to clear up the misconception…

_"We don't really exist."_

_"Aren't there enough secret organizations?"_ Carlos demanded with a sharp glance to the teens apparently oblivious of everyone else.

 _"These guys are different. Right?"_ Josh stared at Leon, another grin on his face that didn't reach his eyes.

 _"We go in to infected areas."_ Leon explained. _"Our purpose is to find proof against Umbrella."_

 _"Why?"_ Jill demanded, glaring at her old friend. _"What's the point? Umbrella's responsible for this mess, everyone knows it-."_

 _"And it's up to us to bring them down."_ Leon cut in. _"The government -."_

 _"Is part of the problem."_ Carlos cut couldn't deny it then they were tossed about as the chopper tilted erratically.

 _"Problem!"_ Case yelled and tried to keep the chopper in control.

 _"You made that clear."_ Leon noted and grabbed onto the straps. _"What the hell's going on?"_

 _"We've lost ground command and I've got multiple incoming bogies."_ Case pulled up sharply tossing Jill into Leon's lap and both smacked into the metal at his back. _"They aren't ours!"_

 _"Shoot back!"_ Leon yelled as a rocket skimmed past them too close for his comfort. He didn't have time to think about the people they'd rescued sitting in the makeshift bunkers on the ground. He couldn't stop to wonder if any of his men had survived…

 _"What are you doing?"_ Josh demanded as Alec and Nÿx scrambled about the chopper, each one tossed more weapons into a duffel able to keep from rolling about. They ignored the question and Alec tossed a bag at Josh before grabbing a second. Beside him, Nÿx shoved the full duffel towards Leon's feet and got up. She grabbed onto the straps and made her way to the pilot while Alec grabbed the door.

 _"Wait!"_ Carlos yelled, hand outstretched.

 _"What are you doing, Nÿx?"_ Case yelled as Nÿx took control of the chopper. Her keen eyes quickly assessed their situation, finding the missiles heading towards them and the city they were leaving behind.

 _"Don't-!"_ Case heard his passengers yell as the chopper dipped sharply towards the ground.

Air filled the cabin as Alec pulled the door open and let it fly. He scanned the ground, calculated their speed and factored in their body mass as the water came into view.

 _"Go!"_ Nÿx ordered.

 _"What-where?"_ Case demanded looking out into the world he was sure to leave any second.

 _"No!"_ Jill grabbed at Alec who easily yanked her towards the open door.

He grinned.

 _"Keep your arms and legs close to your body."_ Then she was flying out of the chopper, scream fading the further they flew.

Josh was on his feet, scrambling towards them thinking Alec had gone nuts. They were a jumble of limbs, awkward with the erratic sway of the chopper. Leon was the second to get tossed out followed by Josh who cursed all the way down.

 _"Krap."_ Carlos said as understanding dawned. He grabbed Alec as the teen made to toss him out and hung on.

 _"Nÿx!"_ Alec yelled but he couldn't do anything to stop from falling.

In the cockpit Case tried to take back control of the chopper.

 _"Let's go!"_ Nÿx reached over and yanked the harness from its hooks. _"Move it, Case!"_ she jerked him out of his seat, shoved his door open and jumped…

**-X-**

 


	4. Remember Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait coming up. I've got a lot of fics in the works and no muse to help complete them.  
> Real life is interfering royally right now so wish me well.

** Remember Me ** ****

Case broke the surface, dragging water into his mouth in deep gulps as he tried to get some much needed air.

“Gross.” Nÿx splashed her hand right in his face, retaliating for his accidental spit in her direction and it didn’t allow him a breath of air. She looked towards the burning wreck sinking behind Case and remembered the PAVE they blew up years ago, the same day she killed Khaza…

“Are you trying to kill me?” Case spluttered as he managed to get a much needed breath. She made no reply, ignored him and his scowl jus like she did anytime he complained of an ache, any pain, being shot… But anybody else- Leon- and Nÿx was all concern.

“Swim.” Nÿx drew a breath and slipped under the surface. Just like that and Case was left treading water.

“Fuck.” He blew out some left over water knowing he'd be hard pressed to catch up, let alone cover half the length Nÿx had no doubt already swam. Treading water wasn’t going to get him any closer to the shore so he did as she ordered and swam. It was second nature, always had been so he'd never questioned why he was faster than the other kids and by the time Case joined up he'd learned not to call attention and did just enough to keep him with the top of his class. It was the same with weapons, tactics- he was too damn good at puzzles for his own good and there wasn’t much he forgot- unless it was to his benefit.

Case looked up, eyes straining as he searched the shore. They were all huddled at the tree line, what was left of it, then he spotted Nÿx- still in the water and she didn’t look happy he was still lagging behind. He doubled his efforts, arms pulling through the water and bringing him closer to the annoyed girl submerged no more than a mile away.  He'd been surprised- that first time. Leon had brought her in, they'd lost most of the team in _Armstead City_ , survivors as well but Leon had come back with Chris … and Nÿx.  She was a ghost. New team members learned quickly not to question the teenage girl in their midst, especially when she was saving their ass from a licker, zombie or some BMF… they kept their yaps shut if and when they got a good look at her eyes. That was just weird, kinda creepy and easily marked her as some kind of freak or Umbrella experiment. Nÿx said nothing, at least Case hadn’t heard anything and he heard a lot but Leon was keeping her around and the higher ups weren’t fussing though that was mostly due to the fact they had no clue Nÿx existed.

_‘Ghost.’_

“Quit daydreaming, Sullivan.” Nÿx glowered at the wet man slowly walking out of the water. He shook his head, flinging dark strands out of his eyes and passed a hand over his face not bothering to reply.  She got to her feet, water dripping from her braid and off her clothes. “Move.” She didn’t wait and that was no surprise to Case. Either you hauled ass and tried to keep up, or Nÿx left you in the dust. Simple and though Case was faster than the others he was still left behind if Nÿx took off at her full speed. He was grateful she kept it slow enough he didn’t have to go full out, after his impromptu swim- thanks to Nÿx- he just didn’t have that much energy to expend, not if they were going to end up walking.

“Alright,” Leon passed a quick glance over Case and Nÿx, who he noticed headed right for Alec, before addressing the group. “We’re accounted for.”

“Keep moving.” Nÿx tossed over her shoulder with barely a glance as she knelt by the bag full of weapons.

“Mov- to where?” Jill demanded, hands on hips and a glare for the girls back that skipped over to land on Leon. She was still pissed at him and that was clear. Nÿx ignored the question, re-armed herself noticing Alec had already done so.

“We’re going to the camp-.”

“It’s gone.” Jill snapped at him. “The entire city and whatever men you had have all been blown up, Leon.”

“Let’s go.” Nÿx stood, weapons in place and fresh clips strapped to her thighs beside the holsters. Her eyes passed over Jill and quickly skipped to Leon then back. Nÿx knew exactly what was bothering her. For the past six months Leon had been hers. He was the closest Nÿx could get to seeing Alec- with the blond hair and green eyes, height and build was close to what she remembered though it wasn’t much- it was easy to pretend. Still, Nÿx hadn’t felt as alone as she knew she was without Alec and finding him had been her sole desire, the reason she stuck around the BSAA this long, just hoping to get some hint, some clue as to where Alec might be… Now there was Jill and it was clear she and Leon had history and the woman was not pleased with him.

 _‘Let him go. It’s not Leon I’ve been looking for.’_ Nÿx threaded her fingers through Alec's as he took her hand. She felt him squeeze lightly and returned the touch turning towards him. She couldn’t stop looking at him, at how fresh-young, he looked. They'd leave, both of them, with or without the others and that was entirely their choice, Nÿx didn’t care- well, not much but she’d be happy just with Alec. She didn’t need anything else now that they were together.  

“Where?” Jill demanded. “And why the hell are we going anywhere with you?” she looked at Case then Leon and glared. “Your bird got blown out of the air.”

Carlos let out a heavy breath muttering it wouldn’t be the first time. Jill’s glare landed on him but he shrugged it off. A crash they walked away from was always a good one, twisted as that thinking was Carlos wasn’t going to complain when he was still alive.

“Different circumstances,” Carlos hoped so, but they really had no idea whose bombs had been heading their way. Last time, it had been an accident- not enough time to clear the blast zone and they'd lost Alice. “They did save our lives.” He pointed out.

“Because they put us in danger!” Jill exclaimed. Carlos just raised an eyebrow. The danger was all around, blaming Leon was well, if anyone had to be blamed for this fucked up world it was Umbrella.

“Still cup half empty, Jill.” Leon sighed with a slight shake of his head. The sarcasm wasn’t missed and Case took one more step away from Leon seeing the look on Jill’s face. It was just smarter not to be near him.

“We are going.” Alec stated, the bickering came to an abrupt halt at his words. The first thing Jill, Carlos and Leon noticed aside from the ‘we’ was the possessive hand Alec had at Nÿx’ waist.

“Someone blew up _Avalon City_ , Leon.” Nÿx didn’t say it was likely the survivors they'd managed to move to the camp on the outskirt and the rest of their team was blown as well. She didn’t have to. Both Leon and Case knew it was impossible they'd survived. Even in the water they'd all felt the after shock of each explosion. Three massive waves that uprooted just about everything in its way. All the trees had been bent backward, more than a few had been uprooted and the more stubborn were either cracked or split in half.

“Take point.” Leon sighed, nodding to Nÿx. “We’ll head NE.”

“Same as the bombs?” Case wondered turning towards the horizon where all he could see was an ocean of downed trees.

“ _Away_ from the city.” Josh corrected and that was good enough for him. No point and nothing left to go back for anyway.

“We travel light.” Alec grabbed the second duffel and tossed it at their feet. “Take what you can. We’re going to be moving fast.”

“Whoa,” Leon shook his head, lips slightly twisted into a half assed smirk. “Lets clarify ‘fast’ because we-.” He waved his hand encompassing the others. “Don’t move like you two.” Leon rested his gaze on Nÿx who hadn’t moved far from Alec's side.

Alec's eyes locked on Case and nodded. “He can.”

Case shifted nervously, eyes skipping from Nÿx and Alec to Leon who was sort of frowning. Then Nÿx agreed.

“He's different.”

“I'm not that fast.” Case protested, he'd made damn sure not to stick out like a sore thumb and here she was calling him out. “You know that. Nÿx…” Case jerked, eyes on Alec and almost asked if the kid had just sniffed him but the dark green eyes and honeyed cat irises made him clam up.

Everyone looked just a little surprised by it. Nÿx couldn’t help the twitch of her lips barely hiding her amused smile especially when Alec realized he'd grabbed everyone’s attention and they were staring.

“He's X-9.” Alec stated.

“I wasn’t sure.” Nÿx’d had no memories of **TerminalCity** before Alec found her, no answer to why Case had felt somehow familiar or to explain his enhanced abilities. She did notice the slight frowns on the others faces, clear that they weren’t happy about being out of the loop. “We knew your aunts and uncles.”

“My…” Case wasn’t sure he was hearing things right. He'd grown up alone with his Dad, far from any family- hell, there wasn’t any so what the hell was Nÿx talking about; aunts and uncles? He scowled at her.

“I met your Mom.” Alec revealed. Case snapped his attention towards him, really glaring and getting pissed. He didn’t like talking about his Mom, she was dead, had been since he was four and he didn’t have many memories of the woman who’d told him stories at night.

“Once. Her name was Tinga. She was an X-5, like me.” Alec almost corrected himself because he wasn’t X-5 anymore, not for a very long time now. “She died protecting you and your Father, wanted you to have normal.”

It’s all the Transgenics and Transhumans had wanted, what everyone in **TerminalCity** had fought for.

“My Mom…” Case didn’t recognize his own voice, cleared his throat and straightened. “Her name was Penny.” No one was going to tell him different, not some freaky looking teenager-

“Smith. Yeah,” Alec nodded. That day and every other was clear and fresh in his mind. From the moment he found Nÿx it all came back, all of it, everything he’d ever done, all those faces… “She wasn’t the only one to change her name after the escape in 2009.”

Nÿx stepped in, eyes skimming over the others barely holding back questions. “He can tell you everything later.” She slipped her hand through Alec's and drew his attention. “After we get out of here. Alec…”

_“He's not ready for this.”_

_“He should know.”_

_“When we stop, when it’s just us and the others aren't listening.”_

Alec eyed the curious faces then nodded. He grabbed the duffel, much lighter than it had been and slung it over his back. “I’ll bring up the rear.”

“Ok.” Leon puffed out a heavy breath, annoyed and stared at Nÿx who looked just as innocent as an angel. “Move out.”

Nÿx gave the barest hint of a smile before she took off, much too fast for them to keep up but she was on point and Leon trusted her to keep them from heading into trouble.

**-X-**

**_Past_ **

Monty’s _hadn’t changed- well, there were a couple fresh coats of paint added over the years and more booths along with an assortment of dishes added to the chips and peanuts only menu. Mole was still as gruff and grumpy as he’d ever been only older and just starting get a bit slow. It didn’t make a difference in service and the large table was littered with baskets of fries, hamburgers, fish sticks, mac &cheese and onion rings. It was the biggest booth and barely accommodated the family gathered for its monthly dinner._

_“She’s adorable.” Zable laughed as Angel wrinkled her little nose and her soft wings fluttered. She was two years old and didn’t like the word ‘adorable’._

_“I know.” Zane made no pretense of being modest especially where his daughter was concerned. He tugged on a silky lock of inky hair and got a silver eyed glare for his trouble but she snuggled into his arm a second later. He couldn’t help wishing Azia would come down but being surrounded by so many people made her panic and he didn’t blame her. She’d been in a cage for most of her life. He looked away from his little girl and found Nÿx sitting across from him, right next to Alec like always. He grinned at the pair, thankful Nÿx had ‘stolen’ Azia on that heist Alec had crashed._

_“So,” Yahir leaned on the table, one arm still draped over Max’s shoulders as he raised a questioning eyebrow at the pair. “When are you two going to add a cub to the Pryde?” he hooked a thumb towards his sister sitting beside him. “Zable's doing her part.”_

_She blushed, gave his arm a gentle shove and let the rest of the family in on the news she’d only just given to Krit before he'd had to leave on the mission with Kade and Syl._

_“Twins.”_

_There was a second of silence before everyone jumped in with congratulations and questions._

_“That’s why you're so big.” Yahir chuckled. “You barely fit in the booth- ow!” he scowled at Max who smiled sweetly at him while he rubbed his aching leg._

_“Two cousins!” Ceana crowed. “Are you gonna have twins, Aunt Nÿx?”_

_“Yeah, Aunty Nÿx.” Zane echoed with amusement clearly evident._

_Alec and Nÿx had been the first pair out the X-5's who’d claimed each other as family. Both had come close to being parents early on, if it weren’t for the Conclave and the poison they'd dosed her with their cub would’ve been eight. It wasn’t something the others knew, only Max and Krit who’d been there and made the decision for Nÿx- to save her life and later revealed to her with Alec overhearing._

_“We’ve been working on it.” Alec assured with his signature smirk in place. He slipped his arm around Nÿx’ waist tugging her into his side though she was almost on his lap already. She sat straighter, refusing to be embarrassed by the comments flying about. They'd finally talked about it, sat down and really talked because it wasn’t so easy. There had been so much to get worked out, with the government, the Conclave was still an issue and likely always would be even with Max’ cure for the ordinaries available to anyone. Neither of them had taken the time to think ahead, of having kids of their own when Krit and Zable, Max and Yahir, even Zane had added to their little family._

_Nÿx leaned into Alec, brushing her lips on his chin before resting her head on his shoulder. She couldn’t deny him much and knowing he_ wanted _kids… she’d do anything for him. The little smirk flitting about her lips was due to the fact Alec hadn’t lied about them ‘trying’ because they'd been ‘trying’ a lot lately and neither of them was complaining._

**-X-**

**Present**

The house was abandoned. Nÿx could find no trace of human decay or zombies. She’d checked the inside before reaching out and telling Alec where she was and where to bring the others. She wasn’t a telepath, couldn’t talk to Leon or hear his thoughts and she’d certainly tried when she’d heard Alice in her head. Nÿx had questioned her long and hard about who she was, where she’d been, why they could talk with their minds but Alice hadn’t been able to satisfy her curiosity. Nÿx hadn’t been anything Alice had expected either but they hadn’t killed each other and that was a plus. Both females wanted Umbrella gone and each was going about it in their own way.

With Alec, it was different. They were attuned to each other, even before she’d seen him; Nÿx had that image of Alec teasing at the edges of her mind. It wasn’t until she’d seen Leon that his name had finally come to the front and she could remember the feelings; they were meant for each other.  

Nÿx and Alec took first watch; they didn’t need to sleep which was something Leon had ceased to question Nÿx about. With both of them around nothing was gonna come at them in the middle of the night and take a bite. They each tread silently through the old house as Nÿx led them through to the exits she’d picked for a quick escape if there was any need. The two upstairs bedrooms had windows above the ‘L’ shaped porch. Jill took the smaller room, the door left slightly ajar while the men bunked down in the larger room facing the west.

Case carefully pulled the door but didn’t close it entirely. Nÿx looked over her shoulder at him from the open door of the third bedroom. She stood at the window, a breeze wafting in through the broken glass and then Case felt him. He turned and found Alec staring back at Nÿx, both of them silent.

_“He’s going to ask.”_

_“I know.”_ Alec drew in a breath _. “I’ll tell him what I know.”_

_“Break it gently. He's -.”_

_“I'm not going to lie, Nÿx.”_ He frowned _. “It won't do him any good and he needs to get over this hang up he has- pretending to be like the ordinaries. Trying anyway.”_

_“Alec…”_

Case didn’t get what the kid was frowning at him for but he didn’t like it and almost said so.

“Come on.” Alec turned on his heel and headed down the stairs. Silent, with Case at his back almost able to do the same but a few of the steps creaked in protest when he put his weight on them.

“Tell me.” Case ordered as they turned into the kitchen. Alec headed to the back door, checked it without saying anything then moved to the window. Case got antsy, shifted from foot to foot and grabbed at the chair left in one piece.

“331450074656.”

The numbers threw off Case since he had no idea what that had to do with his Mom.

“It was her designation. 656 for short. We all had a barcode on the back of our necks. 494.” Alec pointed at himself. “Courtesy of _Manticore_.” He didn’t let Case get a word in as he explained about Lydecker and the program that created them. “ _Manticore._ Its purpose; to create the perfect soldier. A genetically enhanced human hybrid trained to kill.”

“Wait, wait.” Case shook his head, both hands held up for Alec to stop. “Test tube babies.” Because really? How much stranger than zombies was that anyway? “You're saying you're all made up animal DNA, human…” that would make Case a freak- not as much as the teen because at least he still looked human enough.

“We are stronger, faster, smarter.” Alec only stated the obvious, he didn’t sound at all like a preening jack ass though Case wished he did. It would make it easier to pretend this was all some fucking joke the kid was playing. “We would sleep, eat and train together. We were together 24/7. Soldiers.”

“You were fucking kids.” Case breathed out harshly but he didn’t meet Alec's eyes either.

“We were never just kids.” Alec remembered all of it. Both he and Nÿx had all their memories back, every little piece and the details were sharper now than they had been before. Alec blamed it on whatever Umbrella did to them, whatever they changed because as far as Alec knew Nÿx was the only Transgenic he'd ever met able to produce an outward effect. Aside from thunderbolt Khaza. Yet Alec had blasted the BFM moving in on Nÿx without a second thought, not even knowing he _could_ just that he wanted to.

“2009. Twelve X-5 units escaped. Your Mom was one of them.” Alec drew Case’ attention by taking a step towards him. His hand rested on the kitchen table, cat eyes on the X-9 who was having trouble taking in the information especially when Alec looked no older than a 17year old.  “They scattered, went to ground. Max tried to find them a few years later… so did _Manticore._ ”

“Me…? I'm….” Case stared back at Alec, not flinching from the blank mask that kept Alec's thoughts and feelings hidden. They weren’t anything alike and yet they had more in common than Case had with Leon or any other BSAA team member. Case had always felt different; like he didn’t quite fit and all along his Father had known… he’d known and not once had said a word.

“Yeah, we were all made. You,” Alec looked him over- could see a lot of Tinga in the man standing on the other side of the table. The same dark hair, around his nose and shape of his face but the rest was all the ordinary Charlie Smith. Blue eyes and fair skin, but his movement- there was no mistaking the feline grace in his walk, the feral glint in his eyes right then or the slight hunch of his shoulders that was difficult for Alec to ignore; it was the threatening note- like at any moment he'd lunge across the room. “You were born.”

“My Mom…”

“They found her. She called Zack but she got cornered. Then Max and Zack showed up.” Alec shook his head, remembering that night- every second replaying in his head. “She was supposed to leave you both. Go to ground- Zack gave the order.” A brief smile flitted over his lips at the memory. “She wouldn’t do it. Then Lydecker got his hands on you.”

“Me.” Case straightened. His attention shifting from anger and disbelief quickly. He stopped thinking it couldn’t be possible and started to listen. “But I -.”

“I was there.” Alec stated. “He dosed you and Tinga made a trade. Herself for you.”

“She died…” Case didn’t know what he was supposed to feel. Alec had given him the answers he'd been trying to find his whole life. Was he supposed to be happy she’d sacrificed herself? That she died for him and for what? He’d grown up without her, without the woman who was supposed to be there, who told him stories about princesses… He’d been angry, had every reason to be when there was nothing of his Mother to hold onto. Charlie had been unable to talk about her either, a few words at best but never anything about how she died.  There was never any reason and Alec had just told him what he'd most wanted to know. Was Case supposed to feel guilty? Because he did. “Because of me. She died.”

“One of our own betrayed her.” Alec corrected. “Lydecker came to our side after that.” He gave Case a second hand account of what happened. He didn’t hide anything, didn’t sugar coat what was done to his Mother, what Max told Syl, Krit and Zane about their sister. “It was Renfro and she paid for it.” Little comfort as that could be it was all that was left.

“The others.” Case released the harsh grip he’d had on the chair and wiped his palm on his pants, removing the chips of paint that had stuck to his skin. “Krit, Syl, Zane… what happened to them?”

**-X-**

**_Past_ **

_He didn’t like being stared at. “What are they doing?” Zane frowned._

_“We aren't babysitting.” Nÿx growled, dark hazel eyes glaring daggers at the soldiers already strapped into the bird sitting on the tarmac._

_“They're just along for the ride, baby.” Alec assured. His green eyes surveyed the soldiers, picking out their weapons and calculating the odds. If it came time to fight with their supposed own, he had no doubt the X-5's would win, he just wanted to make sure they'd all make it out unscathed._

_“Come on.” Krit started towards the bird. “The sooner we get on, the faster we’ll get home.”_

_“I’d rather_ be _home.” Syl grumbled at his side. It was their first mission since the ‘truce’ though it didn’t feel any different than it had before they'd met with the senator. The situation had improved slightly but ordinaries still didn’t accept **TerminalCity** or its inhabitants. Max was forced to stay behind, everyone agreed she was too valuable to send on any missions out voting her protests that she needed to do her part as well. _

_And she would but only in **TerminalCity**._

**-X-**

**Present**

Leon finally got a moment alone with Nÿx three days later. They stood on a slight rise overlooking a small abandoned town.

“So,” Leon paused, not looking at Nÿx. “You got all your memories back.”

“Yes.” Nÿx responded, her eyes scanning the town ahead for any trouble and easily spotting a few zombies.

“So…?” Leon turned towards her, green eyes slightly narrowed.

“I'm part feline.” Nÿx said on a sigh. She’d told him as much figuring he would be asking when it was so obvious though he’d still asked her to join his team. “More than I had been before.” She hated what had been done to her, the differences- having memories of a life and now stuck in a younger version of herself. It wasn’t easy to accept, difficult to remember that everyone else saw a teenage girl while she felt much older and behaved like it. “Alec is my mate.”

Leon emitted a grunt of acknowledgement.

Nÿx just wanted to make it clear that if it came to choosing, between the BSAA or Leon… then Alec would always win. She wouldn’t hesitate, wasn’t about to loose Alec.

“I'm still in command here.” Leon straightened, stood at his full height and got an amused snort from her. She wasn’t threatened and Leon hadn’t meant it like that anyway.

“For now.” She smirked. Leon frowned, watched as Nÿx started towards the town and was startled when Alec passed him, silently.

“Don’t go anywhere.” Alec called over his shoulder.

Leon scowled. _‘Sir, yes sir.’_ He almost wanted to add a salute but refrained from the juvenile behavior.

“So.” Jill came up beside him and stared at the quickly fading figures down the road. “How long have you had her?”

Leon turned the scowl on her. There was a definite second meaning there and he wasn’t about to give details. He turned on his heel and headed back to the group.

“Six moths.” Leon rubbed his palms on his pants; they were itchy with the remembered feel of smooth skin. That first week Nÿx had told him what she could, what she knew of herself and what she was. She’d been hesitant about being in close quarters with so many men. She’d feared going into heat and Leon hadn’t taken it too seriously because who’d ever heard of such a ridiculous thing anyway?

**-X-**

**_Past_ **

_Leon wiped both hands over his face, heels digging into his eye sockets but it wasn’t relieving his fatigue. He yawned, leaning back in his chair and it pitched further. He made a grab for the desk, fingers barely missing the edge and flailed expecting the hard floor to meet him with a painful thump. He winced, eyes closed and…nothing._

_“Huh?” he cracked an eye and found the fresh faced teenager staring down at him, the back of his chair held one handed without effort. “Hi.” He offered a sheepish smile and Nÿx set him back on all four legs with a thump._

_“You shouldn’t play with your chairs, Leon.” She moved around towards the desk and leaned one hip on it, arms crossed and watched him. Those green eyes following his every move._

_“Its comfortable, and I wasn’t playing.” Leon replied shoving away from his desk and getting up. He found her a lot closer, the move putting them almost face to face or rather face to chest considering her lack of height. He finally noticed her gaze, those disconcerting dark green eyes following his every move. It made him suddenly uncomfortable, especially when Nÿx uncrossed her arms and those small hands splayed flat on his chest. “Uhm….” Leon made to step back only Nÿx fisted his shirt in her hands and yanked._

_Surprised, Leon opened his mouth and felt hers press firmly, her tongue darting to meet his. He fell forward with her onto his desk, both hands slapping on the top to keep them from flattening on the surface. He felt the sharp tug of her teeth on his lip and the answering flush of heat that flowed through him in response._

_“Wait!” Leon pushed off but didn’t get far. Nÿx held on, green eyes narrowed and growling softly. “Hold on-.”_

_“Why?” Nÿx yanked on him again but Leon put up his hands, firmly pushing back on her shoulders as he straightened._

_“Why?” he was incredulous. “You're- you-how old are you?” Leon frowned, huffing a breath in frustration because that wasn’t his best reason for protesting but right then he couldn’t think of anything else. “You look-.”_

_“I'm not a kid.” Nÿx stated shoving him away._

_Leon_ _grunted and stumbled back from her. “This isn't happening.” He muttered wiping at his face. He heard the soft growl and watched as she removed the black shirt. It landed on his desk while Nÿx strode towards him. The way she moved had Leon feeling like a cornered rabbit; no where to run and then he had his arms full of her. “Nÿ-.”_

_He stumbled back and then his legs hit the edge of his bunk. It wasn’t a fluffy mattress nor very wide and his back smacked into the cement wall._

_“Fuck-.” Leon shifted his hold on Nÿx, one arm hooking around her waist and the other pushing off the wall until he had her pinned under him. He was surprised by the smile on her full lips._

_“Much better.” Because she didn’t see why any man would need convincing. Granted there was a much better choice for her somewhere in the building-Nÿx wouldn’t have any trouble locating Case and she was almost certain he'd come to her but… Leon was much easier for her to pretend with. She could convince herself it was another place and the green eyes staring into hers belonged to the one she needed._

_“Huh? Uh-!” Leon found himself on his back, the slim girl straddling him and strong little hands yanked his shirt up over his head. He half sat, the sleeves caught in his fist before he left it go. “You're sure?” he hesitated, a hand cupped on her face as she leaned into him once again._

_“Stop talking.” Nÿx ordered before cutting off any protest he could think of uttering._

_Leon_ _grabbed her thigh pushing her over and barely missed hitting the cement wall. He felt her hand reach to his waist and the firm tugs on his belt. She wasn’t wasting anytime and figured he could help her out of some clothes too. One hand reached under her back, tugging on the black snap that came undone with a pull. He slid the strap over her shoulder following its path with his mouth. She arched into his touch not at all shy and he had to remind himself Nÿx wasn’t an innocent young girl no matter what she looked like._

_Nÿx tossed his belt out of the way, managed to kick off her own unlaced boots before reaching to her belt and yanking it out of the loops. She felt Leon press into her, the heat of his touch on her bare skin and moaned at the firm pressure of his teeth. It just wasn’t enough._

_“Harder.”_

Leon bit down wondering what the hell kind of dream he was going to wake up from because this certainly could not be happening. He'd thought about it- even with the obvious…differences; the slit irises, her much sharper teeth, just a little too long… None of that made any difference to the overall package. He wasn’t the only one who noticed Nÿx, wasn’t the only one who followed her every move though he sure as hell pretended otherwise. She was an asset- a ghost as far as the BSAA was concerned and the last thing he wanted was to screw this up.

‘I’m about to do that now.’

This close, Leon picked up the sweet vanilla scent on her skin. It was soft, just a hint mixed with woodsy notes and lightly musky. There’d be no more wondering about what was under the black suit she wore- not that it didn’t show off her curves. He'd have first hand knowledge from now on and he wasn’t about to waste time on thinking of it now.

“I just-.” Leon drew in a breath. “You're for real-.”

“Shut. Up.” Nÿx growled softly. He felt her legs hook behind his thighs and pull, one more reminder that she was stronger and Leon wasn’t fighting it. He kissed her, those soft curves pressing up against him… Leon’s hand trailed up her arm, fingers threading into the inky locks to cup on her face. He deepened their kiss, tongue sliding against hers and Nÿx thrust her hips against his impatiently.

“I hear you.” Leon grumbled against her mouth.

“Doesn’t look like it.” She leaned up, following as he drew back.

Nÿx shoved him over ignoring the flailing arm as Leon grabbed for anything to keep him from hitting the floor. The bunched lump of black material sailed past his shoulder and Leon knew her pants were no longer in the way. Then Nÿx had his wrist in a firm grip: she gave a light tug and Leon rolled over her, his back flat on the cold cement wall.

_“Son of a- cold.” Leon gasped pushing off while Nÿx pulled him towards her again. He felt the sting of her teeth on his chest and drew back; he took her hands in one of his and held them over her head. She tugged once and he squeezed harder to keep his grip knowing there was nothing he could do to keep her down if it wasn’t what she wanted. She settled and Leon slowly trailed his fingers over her smooth skin feeling the warmth. There was a slight flush to her cheeks, the full lips were parted… She didn’t stay still for long and he felt the tug of her legs but he wasn’t done. He still had a lot of bare skin to touch, to feel beneath his hands, to taste and Leon took a full breast in his hand watching as Nÿx pressed up while Leon pinched the rosy nipple to a hard little nub._

_She moaned, eyes half closed as his tongue flicked at her hot skin. She could feel the ache, a soft throbbing that pulsed with its own life and Leon was taking too long. Her low growl got a sharp thrust of Leon’s hips against her own. His heavy weight settling on her felt good but even better was the hard bulge rubbing against the thin material of her panties that made Nÿx wish she’d pulled those off too._

_Leon felt her grinding against him, soft little growls and moans filled his ears with her impatience. He dragged his fingers down her side to hook on the stretchy band of black cloth tugging it down past her hip. He half rose on his arm, her wrists still caught in his big hand though she wasn’t still Nÿx hadn't pulled herself free, yet. Leon was almost sure that was going to change in the next few seconds and instead of slipping his hand between her thighs he cupped her ass in one hand. Nÿx growled, dark eyes narrowing and sharp teeth grinding together. The smug grin on Leon’s face faltered seeing the expression and the hazel eyes…_

‘Aww, krap on a … fuck.’

 _He could’ve ignored it- hell; it’s what he wanted to do but… The girl in his bed was ready, willing and absolutely….…….._ ‘In heat.’

_Leon_ _just couldn’t believe his luck. The pit in his stomach became a heavy weight and even blind he wouldn’t be able to ignore the feral glint in her eyes. He was disappointed it wasn’t real and instead of mourning his bad luck focused on what he had to do- what Nÿx had trusted him to do if this ever came up._

“Here.” The pen-like cylinder was cold as she placed it in hand. “Use it all.” _Leon just hadn't expected to ever have to use it, she’d been screwing with him, that’s all. But…_

_He kissed her hard, releasing her wrists. Nÿx slid her tongue along his, teeth nipping at his lip even as Leon ran his hands down her thigh. He moaned into her mouth wishing badly he didn’t have to knock her out but this wasn’t her._

‘It’s the cat, all the cat, and she can hurt me, yeah, she can _really_ hurt me once she's back to her normal self…’ _Leon_ _told himself but he was hurting right then too._

_Nÿx ran her nails down his back, hard enough to leave a mark and got a hissed grunt for her effort. Her smile faded at the sharp prick on her thigh where Leon’s hand held her._

_“Sorry, Nÿx.” Leon looked down on her, apologetic and that confused her. “You're in heat.”_

_Nÿx snarled at him, sharp teeth bared and shoved him off. She sent him over the side and sat up, angry at him. Nÿx got up while Leon scrambled back from her on the floor._

_“It’s for your own good, Nÿx!” he didn’t think doing what she’d asked him for would get him hurt and right then was wishing he’d ignored the voice in his head telling him this was the right thing to do._

_Nÿx stumbled, her sight blurring in and out. She blinked, trying to focus and then found herself kneeling on the cold floor._

_“Nÿx?” Leon hesitated getting near her but as she swayed precariously he edged closer. He took her arm carefully, heard the soft snarl of warning and then she went limp. “Nÿx?” he called once more, careful to keep his hands on her arms and eyes on her face. She didn’t respond, didn’t move at all and that had Leon wondering what the hell kind of tranq had been in the little pen he’d been carrying in his pocket since the day she handed it over and made him promise to use it._

_He blew out a heavy breath, strands of blond hair falling back into his eyes and ignored as he carefully slipped his arm around her waist and stood. He did his best to ignore the soft skin rubbing against his-. They'd made it halfway across the room before she went down and Leon picked her up, cradling her in his arms easily. She weighed practically nothing-strange when he thought about the monsters bigger than her she’d taken down barehanded. At his bunk, he leaned down and grabbed at the rumpled blanket, pulling it out of the way before laying her down. She barely stirred, tried opening her eyes and failed while Leon held still, his arm still cradling her head._

_“Great. I'm not only acting like a horny teenager but I'm flinching, thinking you're gonna break my face, too.” He grumbled, easing his arm from under her head and drawing the rough blanket over her. He tucked it under her shoulders, covering every inch of bare skin possible then sat on the edge of his bed just staring at her._

_Disappointed._

_Yeah, he certainly was. Nÿx didn’t say much; where she came from, what she was…_

‘Alec.’ _Leon frowned, because she’d said it and he’d thought maybe she was confusing him with someone else but it had kept her from snapping his neck. Now he sat there staring down at the sleeping girl wondering if maybe there wasn’t more to what she didn’t want to say._

**-X-**

**Present**

The road was devoid of any traffic. Alec drove the SUV Nÿx had picked out of the lot; a charcoal grey beast that had more than enough room for the group.  He spared a glance into the rearview mirror; Carlos, Jill and Josh had fallen asleep. Case had kept awake longer than Leon, wanting to ask more questions that Alec had left for Nÿx to answer. She’d spent more time with Syl, Krit and Zane- just the four of them on that ranch. He'd heard the stories and instead focused on what they had managed to scavenge; water, canned food- nothing fresh but at least no one would starve. They'd even grabbed some radio equipment for Leon to try and contact the BSAA with. So far, they'd had no luck. And Alec was the last one awake now since Nÿx had finally given in while he drove them towards BSAA headquarters.

Alec glanced at Nÿx, her face exactly as he remembered and yet so much younger.

_‘We’re kids.’_

Fresh faced teens no more than sixteen or seventeen and wasn’t that a bitch? Neither of them knew exactly how old they were now and yet they were both much older than they looked. They had an entire lifetime of memories; missions, kills, training, losses… friends and family dead- maybe all of them now, who knew.

Alec curled his fingers on her back slowly dragging them up to thread in her loose hair. He always liked the silky feel of her hair, remembered all those other times he’d do exactly that. In her sleep, Nÿx slowly stretched, back arching under his touch purring softly, content.

_‘Exactly like before.’_

So what if they weren’t the same? No longer X-5 or _Chimera_ … it shouldn’t matter when what was important hadn’t changed. They were together now, he had his mate and nothing could make him let go. She’d fight like crazy-he knew that, she did before and he'd die for her.

**-X-**

“Piece of shit.” Leon winced but refrained from cradling his aching hand. He ignored the piece now dangling from the radio Case had put together from the parts Alec and Nÿx commandeered. It wasn’t giving them anything other than static, no BSAA, no nothing and that was getting more than a bit worrisome. Everyone else was worried as well even if none said so out loud.

“A little harder.” Jill snarked as he walked past. “Don’t think it’s quite learned its place.”

Leon ignored the sarcasm, made no comment though he really wanted to. Apologizing hadn’t gotten him anywhere with Jill and she was right. He'd moved on to something bigger and better, left her holding the bag and she’d paid for it with her career. She was right to be pissed off but seeing as how they were living in _ZombieLand_ , Leon sort of figured being pissed would take a back seat to surviving.

_‘Women.’_

“Running low on everything. Again.” Josh finished with a sigh holding out the empty gallon of water. That wasn’t the only thing that was worrying everyone but it was the one thing they could fix.

“We’ll forage.” Carlos took in the expressions of the group. “Next town.”

“We’ll have to find a police station.” Nÿx tossed the duffel with what was left of their ammo on the ground. “Or a store we can replenish what we’ve used.” And by ‘we’ she meant them.  Because Nÿx and Alec had managed to kill what stragglers they came by sans bullets. They were silent and efficient which is why they liked going into towns alone, without the gun happy soldiers because gunshots tended to draw the zombies like flies on shit.

“This isn't working.” Alec eyed the group, even Nÿx who knew exactly why their situation had to change but hadn’t put voice to it. Because they couldn’t keep driving from town to town, scavenging what they needed and could carry and drive off once more. The cities weren’t safe, the towns far between and Alec did not want to go to the BSAA. Hell, they weren’t getting a response from Leon’s people so why the hell keep heading towards an unknown?

There was a quiet settling, one he didn’t like and the rest of them had to be feeling it as well.

“You got a plan?” Carlos questioned.

“Find a place to fortify and hole up.” Alec answered slowly standing to his full height. “A couple of days so we can figure our next move, make a plan, have a destination, what to do. Driving like this, it won't get us anywhere.” He spared Leon a glance, didn’t miss the clenched jaw or twitching vein and Alec didn’t care if the ordinary was pissed.  Alec was well aware that in their group, he and Nÿx had the most experience. They had a lifetime of military training and the ordinaries were the ones who’d need them because Alec and Nÿx could survive in a zombie infested world on their own. Hell, it certainly would make it easier but Nÿx wasn’t in any hurry to leave the ordinaries.

“Yup,” Jill got up from her rock and dusted her hands. “I'm full up on the tight quarters and the BO.” She eyed Nÿx and wondered how the hell either of them managed to stay well groomed.

 _‘Groomed?’_  Jill shook her head, eyes rolling at the thought. She spared the teen a glance and although wrinkled he was just as clean as the girl.

“Stop where?” Leon demanded moving back towards the group. “You see a Holiday Inn?”

“Not secure.” Nÿx chimed in straight-faced though Leon would bet his life she was making fun of him. “We need a place stocked with necessities; food, water- a store, medium sized at least.”

“WalMart.” Josh grimed. “24/7, baby.”

No one laughed.

Case spread out the map and quickly found them a destination. “ _Swan’sCross_ is the closest town big enough we could find something.”

“Pack up.” Alec moved to help gather the radio equipment while everyone else picked up what little they'd brought out of the SUV.

Leon watched them move, the _“For now.”_ echoing in his head and his eyes easily found Nÿx who hadn’t moved. He couldn’t fault Alec's plan, it was smart but he didn’t have to like being _told_ what to do.

_“Alec, you're stepping on toes.”_

Alec scowled, a rough growl rumbling through his chest as he looked over towards Nÿx.

 _“Why are you so concerned for his toes?”_ he spared Leon a glance, watching him shove the radio equipment into the back of the SUV. Alec didn’t miss her mental sigh and then Nÿx was looking at him.

 _“You're my mate.”_ She wanted it clear, she’d thought it was. “ _You.”_ He's all she ever wanted and now he was there. “ _Leon_ _is frustrated. No contact with the BSAA isn't good and he's worried about his men. You can understand that.”_

He certainly could. It didn’t change the fact Alec didn’t like her taking up for the ordinary. Nÿx had been with Leon for months…

 _“Let him lead, Alec.”_ She knew he didn’t like the ‘request’ so she walked towards him closing the distance. She calmed him with a kiss and Alec drew her flush against him. He made it clear he wanted more, being so close and always surrounded was getting on his last nerve. He was about ready to drag her into one of those abandoned houses they always found in the towns and barricade them inside a room just so he could be alone with her.

Josh turned back to grab the duffle on the floor and raised an eyebrow grinning at the pair squashed to each other. He chuckled at the warning growl Alec gave him for gawking but the kids weren't even trying to spare anyone the show.

**-X-**

Leon pulled up to the small plaza. It was quiet, cars still sitting where their owners had parked who knew how long ago. All along the highway they’d seen empty cars, a couple car accidents and the zombies. Walking corpses, each one redirecting towards the slow moving SUV as it wove through the abandoned cars. Josh had wanted to do some target practice and thankfully Nÿx had reminded him of their low ammunition. The muttered ‘kill joy’ had earned a snarled growl from Alec but surprisingly Josh hadn't paid it any attention and Alec hadn't attacked the big man. Leon counted it a plus.

“Ok.” Leon drew his 9mm watching the rest of the group standing in the parking lot and draw their own weapons, aside from Nÿx and Alec. “Lets split up.” He watched Jill head off with Carlos towards the sporting goods store. He hoped there was ammo in there but if there wasn’t at least there was a police station a few blocks over. Case gave a slight nod before heading off with Josh towards the electronics store. Leon took a step towards the grocery store surprised to see Nÿx move away from Alec. The soft growl from the kid was enough to pull her back to his side and Leon gave a derisive snort as she kissed him. Again. “Gimme a break.” He grumbled. Leon just couldn’t keep his mouth shut and rolled his eyes. It wasn’t any of his business anyway.

The sliding door was still working. It opened for him but before he could step inside Nÿx moved in front of him.

“Whoa, where's your shadow?” Leon frowned and glanced over his shoulder to where he'd last seen the teens but Alec wasn’t there. Leon walked in after her, he'd assumed she was gonna stick with the teen considering they'd been glued to each other-

“At the furniture store.” Nÿx replied ignoring him in favor of sniffing out the decaying zombies.

“So what are you doing here?” because neither of them ever went far from the other.

“Keeping you alive.” Nÿx said with a smile before she took off down the aisle marked _baking goods_ and _cereal._

“Shit.” Leon grumbled following after her at a much slower pace. He found the first zombie halfway down and moved past the unmoving body with his gun aimed ahead. He couldn’t hear her and right then it was annoying because the next thing coming at him from a blind corner was gonna get a bullet and he didn’t want to shoot Nÿx. “Make some noise.” He called in a low voice as he turned into the next aisle. It was empty so he moved quickly looking left as he came out the other end. It was the smell, that stomach churning stench of decaying flesh at his back-

Leon turned, yanking his arms up and out of the way as Nÿx grabbed the zombie.

“Save the ammo.” Nÿx scrunched her nose in distaste but then Leon would too if he was left holding an oozing head. “That is the grossest…” she chucked it into the rotting vegetables looking for someplace to wipe her hands clean and trying all the while not to breathe deeply.

“Yup, right up there with the lickers you blew up.” Leon agreed handing her a pack of napkins he opened from the shelf.

“Thanks.” She took them, turning towards the front of the store with Leon walking beside her.

“We clear?” he asked still looking around as he reached for an empty cart.

“Yes, there was one behind the meat counter. The clerks in the aisles and that last one, not easy to pick out with all the rotting food.” Nÿx grabbed another cart and headed towards the canned food.

“You used me.” Leon stopped behind her, green eyes narrowed as he realized what she’d done. He didn’t like it.

“You make a lot of noise.” Nÿx replied quickly grabbing cans from the shelves and lining them up in her cart.

“Wha- I- where were you?” Leon demanded moving up towards her cart which he noted was already a third full. She was fast.

“Behind you, up on the shelves.” She answered looking up at him. Nÿx paused, hands reaching for more cans and stared at Leon. “You're upset.”

“Upset?” Leon echoed because uh, hell yeah! She used him as bait! Why wouldn’t he be upset? And by the blank expression on her face Leon could see Nÿx didn’t get why it was a big deal. He shook his head and moved back to his cart. “Forget it.” He grabbed whatever was in front of him and started loading it. “We good?” he questioned, not bothering to look at her.

“You're jealous.” Nÿx said. She knew he was asking if there were any other zombies in the store but she’d already given him that answer. She hadn't missed the looks, that slight tick that started in his jaw anytime Alec asserted command…

Leon stared at her. He was. Jealous. He really had no reason to be but he'd gotten so used to Nÿx being _his_ shadow that now, well, he didn’t like being replaced.

“Am not.” Leon frowned. He’d sounded like such a friggin five year old and Nÿx, he didn’t like that little smirk playing about her lips. “Hey-.”

“Thank you.”

 _‘Huh?’_ Leon had no clue what the hell she was thanking him for. He was the one being replaced, relegated to bait status…

Nÿx remembered what he did, the fact he’d knocked her out when she was in heat- she was glad it had been Leon and in that he’d reminded her more of Alec because Alec had tried hard not to give in to her feline, only they hadn't had tranqs that time. And after, when Nÿx woke up in Leon’s quarters she’d been alone, her clothes neatly folded on the end of the bunk. Leon had made no comments, not once mentioned what had almost happened, nor had he tried to make a move on her. She’d kept to his side because of the slight resemblance to Alec that made it easy for her to pretend she wasn’t alone. Nÿx had kept to his side even more after that, he deserved her loyalty and she protected him as much as she was able. Nÿx knew Leon had noticed her staring, that sometimes it made him uncomfortable… more so in certain areas.

“Uh…” Leon had that slightly alarmed feeling again as Nÿx walked around her cart towards him. He was surprised to feel her press up against him though he didn’t resist the soft tug of her hands on his vest. She closed her eyes, full lips slightly parted as they met his and Leon didn’t hesitate to run his tongue along hers. She was soft and warm and that woodsy vanilla scent filled his head again. He held her close, arms slipping around her waist as he deepened their kiss.

Nÿx threaded her fingers in his hair, felt him lift her off her feet and smiled, teeth nipping at his lip before she pulled back. He followed her and Nÿx laughed softly though she did kiss him again. She could feel him respond, his body heat rose, breathing increased just a little and knew it was time to bring him back to reality.

“Leon?” Nÿx drew back, lightly tugged on his hair when he kissed her again. “Leon.”

“Mmm.” He felt her soft lips press on his once more, and again, each time drawing further away from him until she had both hands on his shoulders and pushed against him.

“Set me down?” Nÿx murmured with a slightly arched eyebrow and a little smile on her full lips.

Leon finally realized he was holding her and set her back on her feet though he really didn’t want to. He took a step back from her, confused and cleared his throat not at all sure what the hell Nÿx was doing.

“Uh…you're welcome?” he didn’t appreciate her soft chuckle. “Why...?”

“There’s a difference, Leon.” Nÿx moved back to her cart- practically full and reached to the shelf again. “I was in heat before.” She gave a little shrug, lips pulling up at the corner and Leon could swear there was a slight flush to her cheeks. “Just thought you should know the difference.”

“So…” Leon watched her toss the cans on the full cart and then she was pushing it towards the front of the store.

“I'm with Alec.” Nÿx said over her shoulder.

“What the hell…” Leon was even more confused now. Because _she_ had kissed _him._

_‘Twice. Yeah, it was all her…’_

“You don’t want to mention I kissed you.” She warned from the end of the aisle. “He won't like it.”

That easy and Leon figured mentioning how Nÿx went into heat and picked _him_ to satisfy the itch was also a non-mentionable if he wanted to stay in one piece and breathing. So he’d shut up, because Nÿx had been clear.

_‘She's with Alec.’_

“Yup,” he grabbed a couple more cans and tossed them in before pushing the cart to the front of the store. “Loud and clear.”

**-X-**

**_Past_ **

_Max didn’t drop his eyes, both of them silent now. She’d heard what he'd had to say, listened to what he planned on doing- it was a workable plan. All she had to do was decide even if he hadn't outright asked her to help._

_“Has Nÿx said anything?” because Max had come to appreciate the warnings Nÿx would give them anytime there was a mission planned. Like her siblings, Max had learned to listen and scrap the ops. The two times she’d ignored the warnings had been painful… for Nÿx and then Krit._

_“No.” Alec replied though he was sure Nÿx wouldn’t voice any concerns if she had considering who they were going after and what had been done. “She wants the kid.”_

_“If Cilenti has another x-series… Nÿx is right.” Max agreed and that was saying something considering they hadn't been friendly to each other in the beginning. “With the intel Lydecker has- if she’s making more… We’re in.”_

_“We?” Alec questioned sitting forward in his seat, green eyes narrowed as he looked at Max._

_“ **TerminalCity**_ **,** _all of us here are threatened by Cilenti and whatever she has planned. We’re not sitting back and letting Nÿx take her on-.”_

_“No.” Alec stood. “I told you this because_ we _are leaving. Me and Nÿx. No one else is coming, Max. This isn't a **TerminalCity** thing, alright?”_

_Max was pissed, he could see it but Alec didn’t care. He'd gone over it- what Nÿx wanted to do and he was certainly up for it but they couldn’t do it from **TerminalCity**. _

_“I get we’re super soldiers and Nÿx is special but even you two can't hope to take on Cilenti and this company by yourselves.” Max pointed out. “You guys are gonna need help-.”_

_“And it’s not coming from **TerminalCity**.” Alec cut her off. “What Nÿx and I are doing, its gonna piss off the government. The last thing this place needs is to be back where we started so no. We are leaving and you and everyone in **TerminalCity** will disavow any knowledge of us.”_

_Another silence stretched out while they stared at each other, neither willing to back down though Max had to think of everyone else before putting Alec and Nÿx above **TerminalCity’s** wellbeing. There were kids- X-9’s… her own children to think of before she put them all in danger to help two of their own. But both had put all of themselves into helping **TerminalCity** get to where they were; peace._

_“You know its gotta be this way, Max.” Alec could see her waver and knew there was no way she’d insist on bringing in everyone else on this crazy op. Hell, if it weren't because he knew Nÿx would take off on her own he wouldn’t agree to leaving their home. But Nÿx_ would _go off alone, likely get herself caught if not dead and that was just…._

‘I'm not loosing her.’

_“I want regular reports, Alec.” Max warned in her toughest ball-busting tone. “Wherever you two are, I don’t care if it’s in the middle of a desert you let us know what the hell is going on.”_

_Alec smirked, green eyes alight with the feline they couldn’t hide._

_“Yes, ma’am.” He even gave her a jaunty salute she didn’t find amusing._

**-X-**

**Present**

It took three trips for Leon and Nÿx to reach the limit- or to fill the back seat. Carlos and Jill had filled the trunk space with weapons and what ammo they could find in the sporting goods store. Josh and Case fit their boxes in the front seat so it was a good thing Jill didn’t need to worry about backing up or using her mirrors as she drove into the furniture store through the wide loading dock.

Alec kept an eye on the parking lot but so far there hadn't been any other zombies other than the four he'd found in the store. Those had been taken out and dropped a good three blocks from their doors while everyone else had been gathering necessities. He pulled the heavy metal door down wincing as it screeched loudly then clanged shut. He locked it from inside, using the metal bars and the locks he’d found hanging from the chain. He moved towards the SUV, opening the back as Jill came around to lend a hand.

“You leave the front door open?” Jill questioned as she grabbed the big duffel and followed him into the show floor.

“Yes.” He’d also used some plywood sheets to block the big display windows, nailing them in place and putting at least one heavy piece of furniture against them. On their second trip inside Alec could see the shadows at the front door and hear their weapons. He gave a little growl of annoyance, frustrated by their inability to be silent but even he and Nÿx couldn’t manage _total_ silence. Only the dead were capable of that.  

Nÿx came in first, scanning the show room once before moving towards the back where Alec was unloading their supplies. The building was big, the furniture a mix of modern and bulky fake antiques. She walked past the appliances, where Jill was hooking up a large stainless steel refrigerator. It was a two story building with more glass front windows upstairs. Alec had already secured the roof access where one of their zombies had been shuffling from one end of the building to the other.

_“How was it?”_

Nÿx gave a light shrug of her shoulder and grabbed the boxes in the front seat.

_“Stinky.”_

Alec smiled at the face she made, remembering other times he’d seen her wrinkle her nose at some awful smell.

_“You could have held your breath.”_

_“Ha, ha,”_ Nÿx thought at him, rolling her eyes before heading back to where Josh  and Case were shoving more furniture towards the barricaded windows and Leon nailed another piece of plywood on the door. Their only exit would be through the loading dock. Alec and Nÿx knew it would be up to them to give ample warning in case of a swarming zombie mob.

She set the electronics in the cleared space where a heavy couch had been and headed for another load. Carlos had already started sorting through the weapons he and Jill had pilfered. There was plenty more in the SUV and Nÿx was pleased they were learning. They’d grabbed a compound bow for each of them- silent weapons that wouldn’t attract more zombies than they'd be dealing with. Of course, they’d picked up what ammo was in the store, along with a couple shotguns and rifles that didn’t make Nÿx happy considering the noise they'd make.

“Hey,” Josh called from the door just in the hallway off the main show room. “There’s a shower in here.” He whooped and turned back, everyone heard the running water in the shower. “It works!”

“Shut up, you big ape.” Nÿx warned looking after Leon and Jill who went to get a look at the office.

“We got a break room.” Jill noted turning the corner and stopping. “With a stove.” Her surprise was evident from the tone of her voice and when she turned it on found that it actually worked. “What the hell kind of furniture store is this?” she frowned.

They had working appliances, she had already stocked the fridge with their water and the cart full of soft drinks Leon had rolled out of the grocery store. They had plenty of canned goods to feed themselves for a while and more than enough beds to pick from, not to mention living room sets and easy chairs… there was more krap than Jill had seen in a while and all of a sudden she missed having her place.

“If you want to shower, now is the time.” Leon said from the corner. “Josh looks like he'd jump in fully clothed.”

Jill snorted a laugh.

“He will.” She hurried past him and towards the SUV where she’d tossed in a bag full of clothes from the sporting store. She was looking forward to being clean and out of the tactical gear.

**-X-**

Alec took first watch, heading to the roof where he had a perfect view of the streets around their ‘fortress’. Josh had grumbled about having to take the second watch since he'd been sitting comfortably in the game chair in front of the huge flat screen. There was nothing on it but that didn’t matter to Josh. Alec hadn't cared and threatened to get him if he didn’t come up when it was time. Jill had snickered, eyeing them both but keeping her comments to herself. She was freshly showered and wearing a t-shirt and comfy workout pants. Everyone was out of their tactical gear, freshly showered and picking fruit out of their cans. Leon and Case were busy setting up their radio while Nÿx took to wiring the new security cameras into the existing system to cover what blind corners there had been.

Everyone was settling in… Still, the silence was eerie. The whole town was dead- not counting the zombies he could see. The past couple of weeks, before finally finding Nÿx, Alec had felt it. Each town was worse than the last, there hadn't been any people and they'd stopped checking the places with signs pointing to survivors. There hadn't been any alive, just more zombies.

Now he wondered what had happened to **TerminalCity**. Had they survived? Max and the others… He’d promised to keep in touch, regular communication but-. How did you do that when you were caged?

Nÿx had wondered the same thing. Had any of them risked looking for her and Alec? She hoped not and Alec had agreed. Nothing good would have come of it, no rescue attempt… no. If there wasn’t anyone at the BSAA headquarters then they'd head towards Seattle. And even if they did find Leon’s people Nÿx had already decided to go with Alec. They'd go home and find out what happened to their family. All of them.

“Yo,” Josh called from the open hatch. “See anything I can shoot?” he climbed onto the roof, feet crunching on the pebbles. It was a clear night with a full moon still high in the sky.

“Yeah,” Alec nodded over his shoulder. “But don’t.”

Josh gave a long suffering sigh as Alec moved past. As long as they kept from making too much noise the zombies wouldn’t bother them for a bit. Hard as it was for Josh not to shoot or blow something up, he had to be tired of sitting in the truck and sleeping upright.

Alec didn’t bother climbing down the last steps on the ladder; he just dropped quietly to the wooden floor and glanced out the huge windows. There was a street light a few feet away and that provided enough light for the second floor. They'd set up a few lamps downstairs, enough to keep anybody from smacking into furniture on their way to the restroom while everyone else was asleep. Jill had claimed the big King size on the opposite end of the show floor and that hadn't gone over well with Josh but he was on sentry duty anyway. Alec smirked, moving towards the dark corner where the big four poster bed was cast in shadows. Nÿx had come up, unwilling to sleep in the same space with everyone else. He moved on silent feet, easily making out her small form curled on her side in the middle of the bed. She had fallen asleep and though Alec wanted to wake her, he wouldn’t. Sleep wasn’t going to be easy to come by and he'd rather one of them was fully rested. Alec set his weapons on the dresser lined up against the wall; he let his clothes fall on the floor and stretched feeling his back ease. He'd spent too much time sitting in the damn SUV. He pulled the covers back from Nÿx and she didn’t stir. Had it been anyone else, Alec had no doubts she would have been up and reaching for her weapon but with him…  He slid in beside her, the covers drawn over them and curled himself around Nÿx pulling her into his chest where he could feel the steady beat of her heart and buried his face in her hair.

Alec didn’t know how long he’d slept, only that there wasn’t any need for it.

 _“We aren't alone.”_ He warned mentally since he didn’t want to break their kiss. He rolled on top of Nÿx, her arms finally able to drape around his shoulders.

_“We just have to be quiet.”_

Alec didn’t miss the teasing tone and drew back to see the smile on her face. Again, he couldn’t help seeing their differences and missing what they'd been before. He trailed a gentle hand down the side of her face, fingers touching the corner of her mouth.

“You aren't in heat this time.” Because their first time had been one hell of a beginning, stuck in a tiny room with no way out and she had been all cat. “I love you.”

Nÿx drew in a sharp breath. He'd said it before, plenty of times and meant it. She knew he loved her, that he felt just as strongly for her as she did him but this was the first time Alec had said it since they’d found each other again.

He felt her hands thread through his hair, she pulled him, her soft lips pressed against his and everything she’d wanted to say wasn’t necessary anymore. She reached down, yanking on the hem of her tank to pull it over her head until Alec tossed it aside. He didn’t care that Josh was walking on the roof, or that everyone else was asleep below them because for once it was just him and Nÿx.

“Quiet.” Alec ordered nipping her shoulder when she moaned again. He felt her hands clench on his back, short nails digging into his skin as he trailed his tongue along her collar while he kneaded her breast in his hand.

“…you're fault…” she breathed past another moan. She was right but Alec wasn’t going to stop making love to her, not when he'd been forced to ‘keep it in his pants’ since he'd found her.

“Nÿx.” He growled softly but her hands kept on the southbound journey until she could grab his ass. She’d always said it was one of his best attributes though he'd scoffed at it saying _all_ of him was his best attribute. She didn’t deny it and was pleased he'd gotten rid of all his clothes before coming to bed.

“We’re supposed to be quiet." Nÿx shushed him and quickly bit back a gasp as Alec slipped his hand between her thighs for the teasing reprimand.

“Now,” he breathed past her ear. “Don’t make any noise.” He challenged and flashed a quick grin before dropping a kiss on her lips. The covers fell aside, Alec slowly making his way down her body leaving his mark. She gasped feeling the stroke of his fingers along her inner thigh. She arched into his touch biting back another moan and opened for him. He slid his finger in, pleased by her reaction. She was almost quiet but before long he’d have to cover her mouth if he didn’t want her waking everyone up and Josh to come snooping.

She felt his tongue flick at her hip and then both hands pulling until he tore the thin fabric in his way. Nÿx didn’t care, even less when his tongue stroked her. She wanted him closer, lifted her hips to meet his mouth and felt the tender scrape of his teeth. She shuddered moaning his name, her hand tugging on his hair, the other clawing at his shoulder.

“Alec, please!” she thrust her hips at him, a desperate moan urging him.

Alec drove his tongue inside her, savoring the shudders coursing through her. He held her thighs spread for him knowing she was close and fighting with the need to draw it out, make this moment last longer and his need to have her right fucking now. Nÿx took the choice from him, her orgasm catching them both by surprise, his name on her lips as she tried to get her breath.

He lapped at her, picking up the gentle flow of her juices while the aftershocks coursed through her. She gave an insistent tug on his hair and Alec finally crawled his way over her.

“I need you.” Nÿx whispered drawing him towards her. There was longing in her kiss, a little desperation as well and echoed by Alec. She hooked her legs behind his thighs, tugging lightly though Alec didn’t need the encouragement. He could feel her, the tip of his head sliding into place perfectly, everything just right. He pushed in slowly, a soft growl rumbling in his chest at the feel of her opening for him. There was a thin pressure that gave with a quick thrust of his hips and then the full sensation of her enveloped him.

  1. Nÿx hooked her legs higher on his wais hissing at the sharp pain, one more thing she had never expected to feel again. Alec paused, waiting until Nÿx was comfortable and she felt the rigid set of his muscles, his body tightly coiled and still. He felt her hands curl in his sides, her nails digging into his skin as she pulled him deeper. She groaned into his mouth, her tongue twisting with his while Alec slowly pulled out then filled her again. In then out and again in a slow pace that was torture for them both and each time feeling the snug fit of her close around him.   



Nÿx wrapped her arms around Alec, nails digging into his back. She tried keeping quiet, tried hard not to make a sound but it became more difficult. He knew what he was doing to her, the tender places he could bite down as he did on her neck. Nÿx jerked under him, hips rising to meet his thrusts and keeping her shouts to a hoarse whisper. He didn’t bother shushing her again and Nÿx only got louder as Alec scraped his teeth down her chest, his tongue darting to tease at her breast before taking the pert bud into his mouth.

He felt the sting of her nails on the back of his neck where she held him, the half sobbed plea as she said his name, how she held on to him wanting desperately to keep him close, afraid to let go for fear of loosing him. Alec sensed her need, the slight change in her that communicated fear and he drew back enough to look at her face. Her eyes- _new_ eyes, dark green and molten gold… He knew what the luminescent shine meant, why her tears gathered and felt that same vice clamp in his chest that made it difficult to breathe.

“Mine.” Because nothing and no one was going to separate them again.

Nÿx felt it, that little shift in Alec that called her feline forward in response to his claim. She didn’t fight it, just gave in shivering at the feel of his teeth scratching at her throat and moving towards her shoulder. The rough growl of his voice claiming her once more as his burned through what fears she’d clung to.

“Yes!” Nÿx threw her head back, her throat exposed to him, completely surrendered to Alec.

He rose above her, fisted a handful of her hair and pulled. The gush of warm wetness preceded her cry of pleasure and Alec cut her off, her moan flowing into him. He thrust harder, faster, needing to push her past the first wave of pleasure. He could feel her, the pull from her inner walls only fueling the coil of lust spiking through him. He didn’t miss the frizzon of electricity she couldn’t hold back and that was their catalyst.

Alec blinked past the haze of his release, breathing just as raggedly as Nÿx who lay limp beneath him. He felt the lazy warmth spread through his muscles and rolled onto his side, one arm pulling Nÿx to lie half on his chest. Neither spoke and Alec stared at the ceiling unaware of the smug grin he wore.

 _‘She's_ all _mine.’_

Back in Seattle, when they'd been locked in for her heat cycle Nÿx had fought her desire, she’d struggled with the feline in her but that last time… He'd been oblivious to the change in her, the lack of urgency in her touch though he'd reacted to it. Alec hadn’t expected the small jolts of electricity but neither had she though after that Nÿx had always been careful not to fully relax, afraid of hurting him…

_‘They changed a lot of things.’_

Alec could finally put one check in the positive column in regards to their new bodies. Her silence finally got his attention and he stopped the light cares of his fingers along her back.

“Nÿx?” he tugged on an inky lock of hair. She purred arching and almost immediately froze. “What's wrong?”

She blinked, embarrassed by her feline reaction to such a simple touch. It bothered her, more now that she could remember what they'd been before.

“Does…” she drew in a breath, eyes closing as she whispered her question. “Does it creep you out?” because she wasn’t sure how else she felt about the changes, they certainly creeped her out, scared her a little- not knowing what else she was capable of, how badly she could hurt any of them but especially Alec.

“No.” Alec replied. He tugged on her hair making her look at him. “Not when I'm with you.” He cupped his hand on her cheek, staring into her eyes; strange new eyes he’d have to get used to. He missed the familiar dark hazel flecked with gold- unusual even among their kind…

“I'm afraid.” Nÿx whispered honestly. She couldn’t hold his eyes and dropped her gaze to his mouth.  She traced it with her finger unable to ignore how his canines slightly peeked through.

_‘Like me.’_

Because her teeth were just as sharp as his…

“This, its all my fault.” Nÿx hadn't listened, she wanted and so she did, simple as that and the consequences for her actions were reflected in them both. “I don’t want to loose you Alec. I can't- that’s all I keep thinking about. Of what she did- what they both did and I can't-.” she lay her forehead on his chest trying to breathe past the sudden vice in her chest but all Nÿx could see was Ray- that bloody scalpel in hand while she lay helpless, unable to stop them.

“You're not.” Alec promised. He tugged on her arms bringing her up and kissed her. “I'm not letting anything happen to us.” He said against her lips. She went still at his words, the rough tone of his voice- the Alpha. He wouldn’t make the same mistake again because this time around Nÿx would submit; there'd be no more risks where they were concerned, not like before. He wouldn’t give in to her demands, at least not as easy as he'd done in the past, if he gave in at all.

Nÿx felt his hand at the nape of her neck, the firm tug held a promise and she let her eyes drift shut holding still for him. Anticipation filled her as Alec shifted position so he lay on top of her while Nÿx rested face down on the bed. He nudged his knee between her thighs pleased she didn’t hesitate to make room for him.

 _“You already know what to do.”_  The Col. had told Alec that back when he’d been playing Rep for **TerminalCity**. The ordinary had been right even if Alec had been pissed at having his animal thrown in his face yet again.

_‘We are animals. Both of us…’_

They were new and improved but some things didn’t change. The girl he loved was still impulsive, strong willed… and Alec wasn’t going to let anything take her away from him. He ran his hand over the curve of her ass, leaning down to scratch at her shoulder with his teeth. He drew in a breath; their scents mixed and gave a sharp smack to her ass. Nÿx bit back the tail end of her squeal as Alec ran his hand down her thigh, his fingers digging into her flesh and up again over the imprint his hand had left. He didn’t tease anymore and Nÿx gasped at the sudden thrust. He didn’t pause and pulled out only to thrust into her again. The roughness only heightened what she’d begun to feel just with the tone of his voice in her ear.

Alec gave a sharp tug on her hair when Nÿx rose onto her arms. She stilled immediately, compliant aside from the growl caught in her throat. He bit at her shoulder, pressing her flat on the bed. He didn’t have to tell her what he wanted from her, Nÿx knew and turned her head so she faced him. Alec threaded both hands with hers, the hot whisper of his breath in her ear with each touch of his lips.

“Mine.” Its wasn’t more than a rough growl and then she felt his teeth clamp down on her shoulder close to her neck. She hissed in pain, hands clenching on his. They couldn’t look away from each other, caught in the moment and the feel of Alec on her, in her, filling her… it could only ever be him, there was no one else that could claim her.

“Yours!” Nÿx cried. She pushed back, meeting his thrusts and feeling the fiery shocks flow through her in waves. They both felt it and Alec plunged into her once more, biting down hard enough he broke the skin. Nÿx tore the pillow beneath her cheek, Alec curled their arms under it both panting and trying to get a breath as the last ripples of pleasure left them sated.

Alec didn’t care that there wasn’t the crunch of pebbles over head, that he was pretty certain the ordinary on sentry duty got an ear full because all he cared about was the slowing heart beat of his mate. He licked gently at the broken skin of Nÿx’ shoulder and rose up on his elbows reluctantly easing out of her. She moaned in protest but he pulled her flush against him as he rolled onto his side. His mouth kissing up her neck towards her ear as he brought their entwined hands down and held her.

“You're mine.” Alec said as Nÿx turned her face towards him. She blinked up at him, that lazy content expression a match for his. ”Only mine.” He kissed her forehead, her nose, her cheek. “Always.” He said against her lips.

Nÿx felt the tender touch of his hands mimic the soft pressure of his lips on hers. The slow kiss said more than either could think to speak, Alec’s touch just as she had remembered.

“All mine.” He sighed as he drew back to rest against her back.

“I love you.” She breathed, small hands clasped on his arms where he held her.

**-X-**

“What the hell is that?” Carlos grumbled as he rolled over and squinted. Light spilled in from the craks in the plywood covering the windows and the front door. To the far left of the main floor, Jill sat up in her King sized bed and glared at them. She didn’t see why she needed to suffer through any of them snoring.

“What…?” Case yawned, legs already hanging over the side of his bed and wiping at his eyes.

“Josh!” Jill snapped. She grabbed the fat faux book and tossed it as hard as she could towards the figure sitting in the big game chair. It smacked into his head with a hollow thunk. Josh jerked out of the chair as though someone had pulled on the invisible marionette strings. One hand rubbed at the stinging bump on his head while the other grabbed his weapon.

“What the fuck!” he scowled looking at each of them when they heard it again.  “What…?”

“Ok so its not you.” Jill grumbled as they all heard the soft rumble she’d thought had been snoring. It was evident that no one on the first floor had made the sound.

“That’s not a snore.” Leon scowled as he headed towards the stairs.

“You think…?” Case looked up at the ceiling not sure what to think. He'd been told his Mom was part animal and Nÿx certainly had those traits but… He followed after the others already halfway up the stairs. Sure enough the sound got louder on the second floor.

No one said anything, surprised to feel the gentle vibration in the floor under their bare feet as the sound came again. The sun streamed in through the window, they'd all slept well into the day. To the back in the shadowed corner they saw the big canopied bed. Strips of cream colored material hung off each post and a lump in the middle of the bed.

“Are they…purring?” Jill wondered in a hushed whisper. Neither Carlos nor Josh had ever heard Alec purr that loudly. He'd hardly made a sound the times he did sleep.

Leon moved forward, jaw clenched. Six months Nÿx’d been his shadow-

“Wait!” Case hissed. He had a grip on Leon’s arm in four strides but the sleeping teens snapped awake as one.

Alec took in the frozen ordinaries from his half crouched position over Nÿx.

“Whoa.” Josh let out a low whistle at the sight of the naked pair. He wasn’t surprised considering he’d gotten an earful towards the end of his watch- at least what he’d considered the end since no one had been sent to relieve him.

“I'm guessing he got lucky.” Carlos shook his head ignoring the snarled growl from Alec. Nÿx placed a restraining hand on his chest, her arm coming around his waist. Only her eyes peeked over his shoulder.

“Downstairs.” Leon snapped. He turned his back on the teens, moving Case ahead and waved his arms as everyone started down the stairs.

“What the hell were you doing sleeping?” Jill demanded of Josh. He stumbled a step at her shove.

“I was-.”

“Supposed to be keeping watch.” Jill cut him off.

Leon tuned them out. He had trouble moving past what he'd seen; Nÿx not at all embarrassed at being found with Alec, inky hair mussed up, cheeks rosy and those full lips…. he had first hand knowledge of what they were like.

_‘Well, she wasn’t kidding.’_

**-X-**

Alec frowned, eyes narrowed on Nÿx but she just ‘giggled’.

Again.

“Funny?” Alec growled and quickly pinned her down. He didn’t see anything funny about _four_ males sneaking up on them, especially when Nÿx had only a sheet to cover up with.

“Did you see their faces?” Nÿx giggled again. The sound strange to Alec’s ears when he’d known her to always laugh. “We’ll be lucky not to suffer their version of ‘parental speeches’.” She made air quotes and Alec snorted.

“They can save it.” He relaxed, laying beside her. “We’re not kids.”

“No,” Nÿx agreed turning towards him. “But that’s what they see.”

Alec touched her face, fingers lightly moving up her cheek.

“There's something new…every time I look at you.” Nÿx murmured. “There's something else I notice that’s familiar and yet it isn't.”

“I miss your eyes.” Alec hadn't meant to say it. He could see it bothered her, the sad droop to her full lips when she looked away from him.

“Me too.” Nÿx replied thinking of the beautiful gold-green eyes. Like her, Alec's had changed to a golden brown the shade of whiskey bathed in sunlight and the iris retained the familiar shade of green his eyes had been before.

 _“Breakfast!”_  Carlos’ voice drifted up to them from the bottom of the stairs.

**-X-**


End file.
